One sunny morning, a small gray kitten named Whiskers woke up on a soft cushion in a cozy kitchen. He stretched his paws, yawned, and jumped down onto the tiles. He was a playful, curious kitten who wanted to know everything and always asked: "Why?"
Just as Whiskers was washing his paws, he heard a sound that made him perk up his ears: "MEOOOWWW!" It was such a loud meowing that Whiskers got scared and crouched behind a basil flowerpot.
"Who's meowing so loudly?" wondered Whiskers and carefully peeked out from behind the flowerpot.
Through the open window, he spotted the neighbor's tom cat Felix. Felix was a big orange tom with white paws who looked very important as he walked along the garden wall.
"MEOOOWWW!" Felix called again, and Whiskers noticed that when the older tom meowed, it really sounded much louder than his own gentle "meow."
"Why is Felix so loud?" Whiskers pondered. "My meowing sounds like a quiet whisper and his like thunder! I must find out what the difference is."
Whiskers decided he had to figure it out. He jumped onto the windowsill and then skillfully crossed through the apple tree branches to the garden wall where Felix sat washing his whiskers.
"Good morning, Felix," Whiskers greeted politely.
"Good morning, little kitten," Felix replied and looked at Whiskers with his green eyes. "What brings you to my wall?"
Whiskers swallowed and then quickly blurted out: "Why is your meowing so loud? Mine sounds like this: meow." Whiskers demonstrated his best meow, which still sounded gentle and quiet.
Felix smiled with his whiskers. "Ah, that's a good question! You know, the loudness of meowing depends on several things. One of them is the size of the body and vocal cords."
"Vocal cords?" asked Whiskers confusedly. "What are vocal cords?"
"Vocal cords are special parts in our throat that create sounds," Felix explained. "When air from the lungs passes through them, they vibrate and create sound. The bigger you are, the bigger your vocal cords, and the louder sounds you can make."
Whiskers tried to imagine this. "So because you're bigger, you have bigger vocal cords and your voice is stronger?"
"Exactly!" Felix nodded. "It's like with musical instruments. A big guitar makes deeper and stronger sounds than a small ukulele. It's similar with us cats. But that's not the only reason."
Whiskers tilted his head to the side. "And what are the other reasons?"
"Another reason is the strength of breath," said Felix and took a deep breath. "When you breathe in properly and then breathe out strongly through your vocal cords, the sound will be stronger."
Whiskers tried to imitate Felix. He took a deep breath and then tried to produce the strongest "meow" possible. It sounded somewhat louder, but still wasn't as mighty as Felix's meowing.
"That's a good start," Felix praised him. "But one more factor is important – experience and practice. I learned to meow loudly because I had to call to my owner across the entire garden when I wanted her to open the door for me."
"So it comes with age and practice?" asked Whiskers hopefully.
"Yes. The more you grow and the more you train your meowing, the stronger it will become," Felix nodded. "But remember, loud meowing isn't always the best. Sometimes with a quiet, gentle 'meow' you can achieve much more."
Whiskers pondered this. "What do you mean?"
"Try approaching your humans quietly one evening and meow gently. You'll see how quickly you get a pat or a treat," Felix winked at him. "If you meow too loudly, you might scare them or disturb them when they're sleeping."
That made sense to Whiskers. "So different situations require different meowing?"
"Exactly, wise little kitten," Felix nodded. "We cats use different sounds for different purposes. Quiet purring when we're content, gentle meowing when we want something, and loud meowing when we need to get attention."
Whiskers was excited by this new knowledge. "That's fascinating! So every meow has its meaning and purpose."
"Thank you, Felix, for explaining all this to me," said Whiskers gratefully.
"Don't mention it, little friend," Felix replied. "We learn something new every day."
Felix elegantly jumped down from the wall and headed off to warm himself in the sun. Whiskers remained sitting on the wall, thoughtful about all the new information.
On his way home, he decided he would practice his meowing. Not to be as loud as Felix, but to know how to communicate properly in different situations.
When he returned home, he found his owner in the kitchen. Whiskers approached her, gently rubbed against her legs, and produced his softest, most pleasant "meow."
The owner smiled and petted him. "Hello, Whiskers, are you hungry already? I'll give you something good right away."
And indeed, soon Whiskers had a bowl of delicious food in front of him. Felix's advice worked! Whiskers smiled contentedly. Today he learned that it's not important how loudly you can meow, but when and how you use your voice.
When he lay curled up in a ball that evening, Whiskers looked forward to another day full of new discoveries. Maybe tomorrow he would find out why cats love to purr so much or why they can see in the dark. There was so much he didn't know yet, and Whiskers was determined to learn everything about the cat world.
And as he fell asleep, he meowed softly to himself – not too loud, not too quiet, but just right.