Olive Opens the Observatory

Olive’s observatory occupied the top stair beneath the skylight. Its equipment consisted of a cardboard tube, a folded blanket, and one notebook marked with several enthusiastic paw prints.

She observed moths, clouds, and the red blink of a distant airplane. The moon required no tube at all; it filled the glass and painted Olive’s whiskers silver while she sat completely still.

Her notes were impossible for anyone else to read, but her discoveries were clear: night skies change every minute, blankets improve all scientific work, and astronomers should always be served a late supper.