Friday, December 24, 2004

Thinking about Skywise, and other stuff.  

Today marks one year since we had to put Sky down.   Being able to talk about it after that day wasn't as hard as it had been when we put Max to sleep.  It's funny in a sad sort of way - we speak of it now with almost a hint of pride - we had to put down our beloved buddy on Christmas Eve.  We "survived" the heartbreak of letting him go.  

I feel guilty to some extent that losing him is not as painful.  But what it comes down to, I think, is that Sky had a full life.  He lived to be 17 years old -- a good age for a cat.   I still miss my buddy, though.   He slept above my head on my pillow for about 15 years.  His slow, low rumbling purr was the last thing I heard before I fell asleep each night.  Sometimes, he'd reach a paw out to try to touch Nora at the same time - it was his way of  not only getting attention, but showing that he loved us.

Sky was such a well-behaved cat.  I can count on one hand the times when he seriously misbehaved.

Having to take more care of Sky and Max taught me a new level of meaning to treating one's pets as family members.  Sky's insulin injections went on for years, and forced us to plan around making sure he got them reasonably on time.  Having to hydrate him daily or once every two days was an additional task.  But I never minded doing it all.  He was family.  You do what you have to - spend whatever amount is reasonable to make your family member comfortable. 

Even now, I've never bothered to turn off my watch alarm that was set for 7:00 p.m. - that's when he was due for his evening insulin shot (we referred to it as "shooting the Buddy").   It's been my way of making sure I'll always have him in mind at least once a day.

When my time is done here on Earth, and if I'm asked about what I thought was one of my most significant accomplishments, I will point proudly to how I looked after the health of my Buddycat.