Don't Fade Away, Cat

One of our cats died today and OhMyGosh I never thought I'd ever feel sad over a pet's death but I am.

We call her "Iyak" because she always meow noisily whenever we call her attention. She's old by cat standards; I always maintained that she's the mother of all the remaining cats. My mom found her this morning; I still gave her food last night. I want to think that she died in her sleep and her death wasn't painful.

We first adopted a stray cat when I was in primary school. He wasn't particularly pretty but he's friendly and he goes back to our house because my grandfather always give him food. Soon, he moved in and rarely venture out. Our cats are like that - maybe because we feed them well that they don't find the need to have a nighttime stroll in the neighborhood to scrounge for food. I remember that I have to bring a cat to our school for a Science report and I have to stuff the cat in my bulky backpack because he's scared of the new environment and was thrashing all over.

Iyak is sort of a second generation cat. There was a period when all of our cats moved out from the house. My youngest brother was the one to adopt her this time. She's pretty and cuddly, but has a temper. Sometimes she'll let us scratch her belly but more often she would hiss her disapproval at the slightest contact. Her death was a bit jarring because it was the first time that a cat died in our home. Our previous cats just disappear when they get old. We like to think that when a cat didn't go back to us, they chose to die (peacefully, we hope) someplace else.

I hope that Iyak is happy in their Cat Heaven and that she won't be as moody as she was while alive. I hope that she has lots of food to eat there and I hope she won't be choosy there. Your cat friends are missing you already here.