We only have one sofa in our den.  I try not to buy leather for animal ethics reasons but whatever it is that we have it has gone from smooth to pebbled.  The darn cats keep scratching it.  The onus is on me; I have not kept up with trimming their nails regularly.  So, reluctantly, we had a “salon” day.  I had the hubs help hold them while I methodically snipped their nails.  No one was happy.  Sometimes the claw’s sheath comes off but this time two nails pretty much came out of our 19-year-old Persian Maya in their entirety.  Poor thing!  The color drained from Burk’s face and he said he could not look.  I found them horrifying and fascinating at the same time.  Our little one still wants to be a vet so I waited to show her after she got home from school.  “Mama, that is FASCINATING!” she said as she examined them.  I felt horrible for letting their nails go too long.  “Look at the blood” she said with all the interest of a kid who doesn’t mind a little gore.  Then she immediately asked if she could bring them to show and tell.  “Sure” I said, wondering how well they were going to go over.  So I put them in a little plastic bag to ensure they wouldn’t get lost and off she went to school with her scientific discovery.  I kid you not I once got extra credit in college for bringing in a cat whisker that had been shed naturally.  We used it literally like an antenna and were able to get a low frequency sound with it combined with the aid of a couple of other things which I have now forgotten.  It turns out the claws were a big success.  Personally I thought it was a cool show and tell but then we’re huge animal lovers.  I do not believe Maya minded having her claws passed around on display; I think she was more relieved to be rid of them.  The American novelist Thomas Berger said, “The art and science of asking questions is the source of all knowledge.”  I have always asked questions.  I think it drove my folks crazy when I was little but that is how I learned.  Her father and I both share that love of discovery and it is a lifelong joy.  I am so pleased to see our little one has the same thirst for learning.  Her quest may very well have been started by a pair of cat’s claws.