Little Mama, one of Fran’s and my adopted feral cats, died yesterday, and we are devastated. We made the heartbreaking decision for her to be euthanized after several weeks of an illness that led to her refusing to eat and rapidly losing weight and even losing the use of one of her back legs. She was only about 9 years old — far too young for a cat, especially a pampered house cat, to die...
Part of what has surprised me about the loss of China has been how much my sense of grieving has been shaped by feeling guilty. Of course there’s the what-if’s surrounding her final illness: “I waited too long to take her to the vet,” “My inaction made her suffer,” “I waited too long to put her to sleep,” “I put her to sleep too soon”...
Loving God, our beloved pet and companion, China, is on her final journey. We will miss China dearly because of the joy and affection she has given us. Bless China and give her peace. May your care for her never die. We think you for the gift that she has been to us. Give us hope that in your great kindness you may restore China in your heavenly kingdom, according to your wisdom, which goes...
My eldest cat, China, is well over 20 years old. She was a rescue kitty — she came to me when I managed the bookstore in Sewanee, and a fraternity boy at the college found her, a stray kitten, and took her to the local vet; the same vet who on the very next day I asked “Do you have any kittens up for adoption?” He brought China out to me, and it was love at first sight. The frat boy, who was a...
Fran and I are going through various CDs in which we’ve archived photos taken over the last five years, and finding a few odd treasures here and there. Here’s a picture of China, who is now our oldest cat — she’ll turn 19 next month.
Incidentally, all the bottles on top of the chest of drawers behind her are filled with water from holy wells in Ireland.
The oldest of our four cats has died. Julian (yes, named after the English mystic) came to live with me as an adorable calico kitten in the fall of 1987. I had just moved to Atlanta, and I chose an apartment with the ability to have a cat as a consideration. She was rather shy — a classic “scaredy-cat” — but could be very warm and affectionate with you once she decided she liked you...
This morning my wife had a migraine. Poor lass, she gets one about every three months or so (the stress of living with me). Anyway, she squirreled down into the bed and I got Rhiannon off to school, then went into my office to meditate. Now, normally when I meditate, I close the office door. But I wanted to be accessible in case my wife needed anything, so today I left the door open. And I was...