Goodnight sweet Monday

Corbett | June 21, 2004 11:16 PM

Very sad day here at the Wall residence. Monday, our family cat member, loyal and loving colleague, who has been with us for over 11 years, died of kidney complications.

I knew something was wrong when I stepped into the kitchen to say hi to the cats, and she immediately called out to tell me, "I don't feel well. Come and help." If you've lived with animals for many years, you know they can communicate very clearly.

I found her soiled in wetness, and had seen the same thing with sick elderly people. She was very embarassed and uncomfortable, so I took her out into the sun to sponge her off, and let her dry. She couldn't walk very well, but labored to walk away. She hates the outside. Terrified of it. So I knew she had her mind set on finding a place to go and die. Cats want to be in a quiet place away from people and other animals when their time comes. She knew it was coming.

I called Irene down to comfort her, and we decided to try to find a vet anyway. As Irene was getting ready, calling around to find a vet open on Sunday, I sat with her on the porch talking to her, and petting her. Her eyes were still very bright and green, and I could she that she wasn't in pain. With considerable effort, she raised her head high to reach my nose, touched it, and with her unique cat language told me in that touch that she was not scared, just very tired. She tucked her head firmly under her arm, and I was sure that was it. Just then, Irene stepped out the front door, and Monday immediately sparkled for a few minutes. We put her on our lap, and drove down the mountain while she curiously enjoyed the ride, watching the trees and the blue sky. She normally hates the car, and is terrified of going anywhere. This time she was just calm, quiet, and curious.

We found a vet, and he confirmed that it was kidney problems. She spent the night for observation, but didn't make it through the night. Last night we closed the restaurant, picked up her body, and held a little ceremony in our backyard with the whole family, Tiff, Irene, me, Cho Cho, and Chaplin. Irene wanted her buried in something pretty and white, not just a towel, so we wrapped her in one of Irene's cute white dresses, so she could feel pretty. The touching and sad part was that before we placed her in the ground, her pretty green eyes opened a bit and shed a tear. I closed her eyes, gave her one last scratch behind the ears, and placed her food and water bowl with her so she wouldn't be hungry. We placed some flowers on her, buried her, and lit a candle to show her the way.

Goodnight sweet Monday. You came to us on a Monday, and left us on a Monday. Sweet dreams.

Category: Ramble

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