Blanchie, August 26, 1992 – April 14, 2008.
How do you say farewell to an old friend? How do you let go of sixteen years of joy? The answer is you don’t. I will never let you go, you will always be in my heart the way you were when you were alive. We had a special relationship you and I; a deeper, closer relationship from the beginning when as a tiny kitten you would bite my nose every time I kissed you. I thought you were the most beautiful thing I ever saw, a white ball of fur with little black markings on top of your head and back, that’s why I named you “Blanche”
and the name suited you perfectly.
You were the sweetest, most loving cat I ever had but also the most assertive and strong willed. In direct opposition to my other cat, Ricky, you were a creature of light, you sought the sunshine, hoarding it with your little paws, and nothing made you happier than basking in the sun while laying on my bed during the weekends which was your special treat because during the week you were downstairs with Ricky, something you accepted grudgingly. You were a people’s cat, a sociable cat, nothing made you happier than being in the company of people and getting petted – then a sweet smile would border your lips letting everyone know how happy you were. You embraced your old age in the same tender manner you lived the best years of your life and when illness struck you, you showed incredible bravery, dragging yourself upstairs with the last ounces of energy you had left in your thin, bony body so devastated by the illness.
I had taken you for a full blood work two years ago and you were healthy as a horse, so when you started losing weight but remained your active self I didn’t think much of it, you had gotten so big that I thought it was a good thing. Now I know that was a mistake, I should have taken you for blood work religiously every year and we might have been able to prolong your precious life a bit longer. When I got back from vacation I noticed that you had lost a lot of weight in a week so I immediately made an appointment with my favorite vet in the city but he couldn’t take you till April 26 saying that if you were eating and drinking you would be fine, against my better instincts I decided to wait and for that I asked for your forgiveness when you took a turn for the worst while I petted you in the bathroom and you purred for me as if saying there was nothing to forgive and you would always love me.
I should have taken you to another vet immediately but they would have put you to sleep right away and we would have missed that last weekend together during which you forced yourself to drink and eat for me and I fed you an energy drink which you seemed to like with a dropper. I will always treasure those moments, same as I will treasure the memory of you sneaking up by my pillow and pressing your head against my hair when I occasionally took my naps on the weekends. You loved the scent of me, rolling around the dress I had just worn and paying no attention to me when I scolded you for shedding all over it.
On your last morning I figured you were too weak to come up and left you downstairs in your bed but you had other ideas. You didn’t want to go into that good night in the basement but with your family around you and chasing the light, always chasing the light. You were beloved Blanche and you knew it, waiting for me to take you to the vet for the last time and dying in my arms when they gave you the shot while I held your little head in my hands, on a clear, beautiful day full of sunshine, the kind of day you adored. I believe we’ll see each other again my beautiful pet and till that happens you’ll be no doubt stubbornly chasing the sun in heaven.
Love Always,
| Blanche |
| 14, Apr 2008 |
| Beatrice Brusic |