Death in the Family

"Jane"* lost her second cat of the summer.

If you aren't a pet owner, you may not know how it is for people who love cats, or dogs. Rabbits. Whatever.

Me? I don't have pets -- when would I have the time? But Nightwatch has a cat; big, fat, spoiled rotten by our senior tenants. He's smart -- opens unlocked doors. Catches flies. Talks to us when he needs something.

I'm still missing Heidi my parents old weiner dog, ca 1972 to 1986. I'd come home and there would be a weiner explosion. I was dad, mom, and rich uncle rolled into one.

So, even though I haven't had a pet since Heidi, I understand the place they come to play in our lives.

That's why I'm sad today for Jane.

Losing one cat this summer was bad enough, but this week her only other cat got sick. She took him to the vet, but when she got there it was not breathing in the back seat.

I'm sitting in the bar, and listening to Jane's grief, and thinking about Heidi, and knowing that the sense of loss and sadness is very real.

So today, my prayer for Jane is that she will heal and find peace and that God would bring another four-footed friend into her life.