"Just for a 'flu vaccination?"

the receptionist asked when I 'phoned her.
    "Yes, C....(our doctor) told me to phone today about it, " I said and explained that Middle Cat was taking the Senior Cat for his this morning.
    "I think you had better come in then too. It will only take a minute."
I thought about all the other things that needed to be done. I thought about being protected. I went.
Being of a certain age the Senior Cat and I do not have to pay to get an annual 'flu jab now. Middle Cat, who has some chronic health issues, does not pay either. The government isn't being kind. For once they have worked out that it is cheaper to have people vaccinated. 
We know that from experience. The Senior Cat and I had a bout of Influenza A last year - not covered by the vaccination. At the time the doctor said that having the added protection of the vaccination probably saved the Senior Cat's life.
C... was pleased to see all three of us at the same time. Middle Cat and the Senior Cat know her rather well.  C....tells me she would rather not know me that well. I know what she means. It isn't that she doesn't like me but she is happy if I don't need to see her. 
       "Good. We don't need a repeat of last year," she said on seeing all three of us.
        "No, I'd rather not feel like that again," the Senior Cat told her.
You can never tell how another person feels but if the Senior Cat felt even just as bad as I did last year then I am very glad we had those jabs. I remember not wanting to do anything for days. The Senior Cat didn't do anything for weeks. It was, to put it mildly, an anxious time.
My upper right fore paw feels sore this morning - at the point where then nurse injected into the muscle - but I would rather feel sore. It will be gone in a day.
And I thought of those people who can't be vaccinated for medical reasons. Then I thought of those people who refuse to be vaccinated and refuse to have their children vaccinated.
My mother, a Christian Scientist, didn't want us to be vaccinated against anything. My father did. He enlisted the aid of my godmother, a nurse. We kittens were vaccinated against the usual range of diseases. There is an even greater range of vaccinations available now.
I am glad we were given what protection was available. It just seems sensible.