Loy Krathong Night with a Very Nervous Cat

Loy Krathong is my favourite night of the year, but it turns out Oishi does not agree. He is a six-year-old British Shorthair with a round face and a permanent frown, and the moment the first firecracker went off near our place in Thonglor, he dived under my bed and refused to come out.

Mum had told me to float the krathong on the canal behind our soi, so I went with my friends. We set our little banana-leaf boats with candles and coins on the water and tried not to get wet. Everyone was laughing and taking photos, and I kept thinking about Oishi alone in the flat with the aircon on and the TV turned up loud.

When I got home an hour later, I sat on the floor and waited. After a while his face appeared from under the bed, very slowly, with the offended look cats get when they think you have abandoned them. I think he forgave me after a tuna treat. Honestly, the treat was probably for me.

Next year I am going to try the trick my grandmother used: a soft blanket over the bed and the fan on low, so the noise is not so sharp. Oishi will probably still hide, but at least he will be comfortable about it.