It’s one of the titles in the Open Your Heart series … but it’s also an experience.
A year and a half ago, my cat-companion of 14 years died. My relationship with Spike was the longest relationship I’d ever had with anybody, and his death hit me hard. We have other animals — another cat, Kirsipuu, a lovebird named Robert Johnson, a bearded dragon and various assorted fish — but Spike was special. He was my boy.
And I still go on crying jags because I miss him so much I feel that I can barely breathe without him.
I’d determined not to go that way again. And then our local animal shelter put out a SOS: they’re overrun with cats, carriers are stacked in the hallway, they need some homes. And so we went and visited, and finally came away one cat richer: a black and white three-year-old whom we named Becket.
Becket is still settling in, but has already made it very clear that he’s happy to be here. When I first adopted Spike, I didn’t see him for a full two weeks. Litter was used and food and water consumed, but he was nowhere to be found. It took him a very long time to accept that I wished him no harm. By way of contrast, a half-hour after arriving home, Becket was purring in my arms and giving me head-butts.
I cried again this morning for Spike, but passing along the love I felt — that I still feel — for him is a far better tribute to his time on earth than being wrapped up in self-absorbed grief. And just as Spike opened my heart in many, many ways, so too will Becket, I’m sure.
We’re lucky to share space with them. And if you know cats at all, you’ll know that they agree whole-heartedly: yes, indeed, humans are lucky to share space with us!
– Jeannette Cezanne
www.JeannetteCezanne.com
Posted by: — jcezanne
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And having been lucky enough to see pics, I can add this: Becket is one cute kitty!
Comment by Meg — October 21, 2007 @ 7:52 pm