Sunday, July 20, 2008

Au Revoir, my sweet little friend

Yesterday was what I would call Black Saturday. Our family, my husband, son Tim, daughter Red, and I had to say our goodbyes to Avalanche. With Avalanche's illness of kidney failure this poor little guy dealt with so many more complications, all working against him. He was such a trooper and fought hard to get better. But the odds were against him, and we are now suffering the loss and missing the sweetest, most even tempered cat in our world. The other cats in our household are also feeling the loss. And they, too, are grieving in their own way. Avalanche was one of three siblings living here. Misty and Midnight are his sisters, and Tornado was his buddy. Red watched Avalanche and his sisters being born, and this was probably the hardest thing she had to do in her life by letting him go. Please visit Red's blog to read her memoir on Avalanche.

Avalanche was only 12 years old. I know, many of you are probably thinking that he lived a good life. And yes, he did. But he is gone much too soon. I have mentioned in a previous post that when Red left home to attend KU she had to leave one of her three cats behind because she was only permitted to have two cats living with her in her apartment. A few months previous to her leaving home we had experienced saying goodbye to our first cat, Kitty.

Knowing I was temporarily "losing" my daughter who is also my friend, and losing her cats, I was facing an empty house. So shortly before she left town, we went to the Humane Society and "found" and adopted Tornado. Avalanche and Tornado totally bonded and became what we have called "best buds."
Please go read Red's post about our sweet little fur ball. I will deeply miss my furry little alarm clock. Avalanche was better than any mechanical alarm clock. When he was younger Avalanche would retrieve items. You could toss a cat toy and Avalanche would bring it back so you could toss it again and he could chase after it and bring it back again. Avalanche would also drag long pieces of chain around and lay it at our feet. That was usually his way of communicating to us that he wanted our attention.
Avalanche was the only cat who would lick my face. He was so loving, so communicative, so social, and so loyal. This cat has been one of a kind and will not easily be forgotten.
I have a couple of videos of Avalanche, too. But I think I will save those for another post.
Au Revoir my sweet little friend, my little "love bunny."

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

How very sad. We went through almost the same thing with our Tonkinese cat with kidney failure. We tried everything to save him but after hundreds of dollars of vet bills we had to let him go. We never got over it. We have gotten more cats but our Mystery was that special one. I totally understand your grief.

Mary C said...

Thank you so much for your kind words, Linda. It's amazing, isn't it, how some pets "stand out" more than the others.

Martha said...

I am so sorry for your loss, Mary. Some pets are truly special companions and the loss is deeply felt. You and your family are in my prayers.

Angie said...

I too am so sad for all of you! My 'soul mate' happens to be a wienie dog that's 12 years old, and I dread the day....My heart aches for you. Try to remember "always blessings...never losses"

Mary C said...

Martha - thank you so much for the prayers. I know time will heal the hurt we feel from this loss. I hope that your little kitties are doing well. They are so cute.

Angie - thank you for visiting and commenting. Your thoughts are so much like mine...thinking ahead when we will have to say our goodbyes to loved ones. But as you probably know we are never prepared when it does happen. I do hope your little wiener still has plenty of years ahead of him. One thing that helps is all the beautiful memories we have of our loved ones. Another help has been digital photography to help us remember precious moments. I plan on visiting your blog(s); I think I've been by before, but I don't know if I ever left a comment.

Jackie said...

I feel your pain. Saying goodbye to such a long time friend is hard.

Lynne at Hasty Brook said...

I'm so sorry about Avalanche Mary. I'd been thinking about you this last week and wondering how he was doing. I'll pray that your sorrow soften and will ask St. Francis to keep you in his prayers too.

Shelley said...

sorry to hear about the loss of your little "love bunny" - every kitty seems to have such unique personalities and we connect to them so strongly. God bless.

Mary C said...

Hi Zhakee - thank you. I know time will heal, and the memories will help sustain us.

Hi Lynne - thank you for the prayers and the thoughts. Having friends around (both virtually and locally) really do help ease the pain.

Hi Shelley - thank you. Saying goodbye is the hardest thing of all, especially when it's a family member.

Larry said...

I'm so sorry.-I've had cats since I was a kid and it broke my heart everytime one of them died.-

Mary C said...

Hi Larry - I guess we're all soft hearted, or maybe it's just part of our human nature to have our hearts broken when a loved one (human or pet) dies. I've just barely gotten over Kody's death (our siberian husky) from a year ago, and now I'm dealing with another one. Of course, all our pets are probably considered "seniors." But it's still hard to let them go -- they all are part of the family.

Lutheran Lucciola said...

I'm so sorry to both you and Red. It kills me when a beloved kitty dies, I know the grief is so heavy.

KGMom said...

I just hate it when we have to say goodbye to sweet dear furry friends.
Sorry I wasn't here sooner.
Glad Avalanche had a good life and gave you such love, and you returned it.

RuthieJ said...

Hi Mary,
I'm so sorry to hear about your loss of Avalanche. He was a beautiful kitty and it sounds like he had a good life with your family and you have many wonderful memories of his 12 years as your "furry child."

Mary C said...

Hi LL - thanks for stopping by and commenting. It's a week today and the hurt, of course, is still there, but not the intensity we felt last weekend. It's amazing how much our pets are so intertwined with everything we do.

Hi Donna - thanks. We're still adjusting -- even the other cats are adjusting. I think what I miss most of all is Avalanche's cuddliness and his faithful morning wake-up call. None of the other cats like to cuddle like he did, and they aren't as good an alarm clock.

Hi Ruthie - thanks. Yes, he was beautiful both on the outside and inside - such a gentle nature. And you're right, we have lots of wonderful memories.

Mel said...

I'm so sorry for these news.
I bet you are going to miss many things from Avalanche, but you should also remember the good moments and enjoy them, even as a memory.
Take care, dear Mary, hugs from this side of the world.
Mel

Mary C said...

Thanks, Mel. We have memories and several photos to remember Avalanche. He was one of a kind, but we will adjust. His cuddling and his habit of waking me evey morning are the things I miss the most. And that is because none of the other three cats we have like to cuddle, and they don't wake me in the mornings like Avalanche did.

Kathi said...

No matter the circumstances, it is never easy losing a beloved pet. They all hold a special place in our hearts, as their lives entwine with our own. You remember your daughter, your father, your life as it was when that pet was young and reflect on the changes since. You miss all their quirks and charms and even their foibles.

I grieve with you for my lost pets, even as you mourn Avalanche's passing.

~Kathi

Mary C said...

Thanks so much, Kat Doc. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.

 

Current skin is MC Winter 08 and designed by Red.
Best viewed on Firefox at 1024x768, larger or widescreen.