One sunny Saturday morning, Granma entered into my room like a cheerful whirlwind. "Simnikiwe!" she called out her voice full of excitement.

"Yes, Granma!" I replied rubbing my sleepy eyes. "Anita has finally had her babies! Come quick! They're in the hut!" My heart raced with joy as I jumped out of bed, eager to see the tiny little ones. I rushed to the hut and to meet the new arrivals.

"Wow!" I gasped, with my eyes wide open as I saw the cute little kittens. "How many are there?" Granma asked, her smile as big as mine. I quickly counted, my fingers racing across their soft fur. "Eight!" I exclaimed in excitement. "I have to tell Lungi!"

I dashed out door like a rocket, my heart bubbling with joy. Lungi wasn't just my cousin, she was my best friend in the whole wide world! We had been counting down the days, eagerly waiting for Anita to have her babies, now the moment had finally arrived! I could hardly contain my excitement as I ran to share the wonderful news.

"Lungi! Lungi!" I shouted. "You won't believe it, Anita has eight kittens now!" Her eyes got wide. "No way! Where is she?" she asked her voice bubbling with joy. "In the hut. Come on, hurry!" I grabbed her hand, and we raced towards the huts.

But when we arrived, I froze in shock, Anita was nowhere to be seen! "What happened?" I gasped. I looked around and saw three little kittens left  behind. "Do you think the dog got them? No way!" We both exclaimed, remembering how the dog had one eaten my first cat. Ever since then, I had been extra careful to keep Anita safe, and I was determined to protect her little ones too!

I called for Granma, who was busy in the kitchen, but there was no answer. Just as we were starting to feel sad and confused, Anita suddenly appeared! She picked up one of her kittens by the neck, carrying it in her mouth. "Anita, stop that!" I shouted, worried she might hurt the little one.

But she was gentle, and off she went, carrying the kittens all the way to the room. We followed her, and there were the other kittens, all cozy on my couch! We were so relieved that we have found them safe.

They are so adorable, aren't they?" Lungi said, her eyes shining with joy. "I know!" I replied, smiling big as we watched Anita curl up her precious babies on my couch.

After a while we decided to go to the kitchen for a snack. "Granma," I said as Lungi and I entered the kitchen. "Why does Anita carry her babies by their necks with her mouth?" I asked curiously. "Well that is just the way cat do it," Granma explained with a grin. "They carry their babies like that, and no they won't get hurt. It's been like this for centuries."

The next morning, I woke up and the first thing I did was check on Anita and her kittens. They were so cute! I could watch them everyday.

But one of them wasn't moving. Strange. I picked it up and it still didn't move. I screamed, "Granma! Mom!

"What is it?" Mom asked as they both rushed into my room. "Little kitty won't move," I said, my voice breaking. "Oh, my poor grandchild," said Granma, coming closer to hug me. "Its dead. I'm sorry."

"No," I cried as tears filled my eyes. "This is sad," Mom said, walking away. She didn't want to see me cry, I guess

Granma and I buried the kittens and the went to my bedroom to check on the others. "They don't look healthy,' Granma said. "Maybe Anita doesn't want to feed them," she added. "But why wouldn't she?" I asked, feeling puzzled. "Breastfeeding isn't easy, even for humans. If they don't get milk soon, they might not survive," Granma warned.

"No!" I cried, rushing out of the room to find Lungi. I told her what happened to the kittens and she felt sad too. "It's  because Anita doesn't want to feed them. What are we going to do?" I asked miserably. 

"I have an idea," Lungi said. " We can hold her while the kittens feed at least twice a day." "What? No way! I don’t want to hurt Anita. Grandma said it’s not easy for mothers to breastfeed,' I replied. 'But what choice do you have? The kittens might die, and it’s not like Anita will be hurt by feeding them because we will do this gently. It’s only temporary, until they’re old enough to eat on their own," Lungi reasoned. 

I agreed. We both rushed to my bedroom and gently held Anita on the couch so she wouldn’t move while the kittens nursed. They were really hungry.