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An elderly couple in matching cream sweaters laugh over tea and cookies as a white Persian cat lies on the lace tablecloth. 10 / 34

Grandma Set the Table With Her Best Lace for Tea. The Centerpiece Showed Up Late.

AI imagepersian catafternoon teakitchen

Afternoon tea is served: a little white teapot, two cups of amber tea, a plate of butter cookies, and a lacy crocheted tablecloth that has probably been in the family for decades. Frank and Edna are laughing across the table at each other in their matching cream sweaters, warm light streaming in from the kitchen window behind them. The centerpiece, however, is not the teapot. Duchess has sprawled across the lace right between the cups, her long white fur fanning out over the edge of the table and her golden eyes staring straight ahead as if she was always meant to be the guest of honor.

Cats love tables for the same reason they love bookshelves and windowsills: height lets them feel secure and keep an eye on everything. But a tea table holds a few hazards. Hot drinks can spill and scald, and teapots and cups are easy for a swishing tail to knock over. Tea itself contains caffeine, which is not safe for cats, and butter cookies are not cat food. If your cat insists on joining, consider offering a nearby chair or a cozy perch at the same height, so she can be part of the gathering without sitting in the middle of the hot cups.

Edna and Frank do not seem bothered in the least. Teatime is about good company, and in this house that clearly includes a very fluffy, very confident guest of honor.

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