THE CAT WHO…BECAME A LEGEND

My mom always says it takes three weeks to get used to any new situation, and I guess it’s been about three weeks since Boogs has been gone. While to some degree I would say we’ve “gotten used to” him not being with us, right now, it’s still hard to imagine I’ll ever feel it’s “normal” that a member of our family missing. But then I remember that I’ve lost pets before—Max, Fritz, Cookie—and I know from those experiences that eventually you do adjust to the new dynamics in the household, you do learn to accept the “New Normal.” I’m just not there yet.

But over the last few days, I feel myself moving more and more into knowing and accepting that as time goes on, my thoughts of Boogins will be less about how sick he was and how difficult to take care of, and the sadness of losing him will eventually be replaced by what I’m calling “The Enchantment of Legend and Lore.”

Right now, I’m still very much feeling the emptiness when I sit down and a cat does not instantly jump into my lap. I try to encourage Squee to sit with me, but that is apparently “not his style”—though I did get him to sit with me a few days ago for about a half hour, and I’ve got to tell you, at literally twice Boogin’s weight, he is a very different kind of lap cat! But eventually I’ll get used to sitting without a cat (or I’ll get used to sitting with humongous Squee!) and the memory of what it was like to sit with Boogins will become more a tale that is told: “Remember how Boogie always used to want to sit with me? How I could never sit down without him being right there? Geez! He was one clingy cat, wasn’t he?” And I will say that with a smile…remembering….

Eventually everything Boogs did, all his little idiosyncrasies, will become the stuff of legend and lore. He will become “larger than life,” a charismatic presence that will live on vividly in our family history, long after he has left our family. In that way, he will never die, because the memory of him will grow—perhaps stronger, and most decidedly fonder.

I did a little research, and the Bible says there will be animals in Heaven. That makes sense to me, since I find it hard to believe that God would not see the beauty and value in an innocent and delightful dog or cat. After all, He created them, right? And it is surely no accident that at the same time God created kitty cats and puppy dogs, He also created something in us that perceives kitty cats and puppy dogs as lovable and adorable. (God probably also finds beauty and value in ants and rhinoceroses, but here I’ll hold off on the “loveable and adorable.” I’m not evolved enough yet for that!)

My belief is that our beloved animals go ahead of us, populating Heaven, waiting for us to arrive. They may not be there in the exact same form we remember, but I believe that whatever it was about our pets pet that made them so special to us, their life force, still exists, and we will once again get to experience the joy of that very special “person to pet” relationship. After all, how could Heaven be heavenly, if we did not get to enjoy God’s most delightful creatures?

But until I get there, and meet my pets again on the other side, on this side they will all continue to live in legend and lore, and will never die in my memory. Slowly, I’m feeling that Boogs is passing into that realm where he is becoming part of history, larger than life, another of many beloved dogs and cats who contributed in molding me into the person I have become, and who will always be part of who I am, right on into eternity.