Harley is gone. A week has gone by & the lack of a companion in the morning, the absent plop of descent from a nap as well as adjusting from the habits of living with a pet are difficult. 16 years old, she never lost her feral cat nature, barely tolerated humans & let them know when she was ready for their attention. She learned their language, clearly speaking a minimum of terms-out, door, milk, Carl & thanks; every visitor was greeted with a hello but don't touch me-yet. Originally named for her constant loud purring, she communicated well even though her meow was more human than cat. She couldn't say 'brush me', but was recently able to convince me to keep her groomed by bringing me to the closet & looking ragged. Harley considered herself our caretaker, reminding us of bedtime by a game of unblinking staring until we finally turned out the lights or responded 'go to sleep'. If I painted late in the studio she would continue to visit me & scratch herself on the easel, shaking it until I responded with a pat. She may have been part border collie the way she herded us to bed. This summer was rough on Harley-sleeping 23.5 hours a day can wear one out. Stray cats were clamoring for ownership of territory which finally diminished to the area of the porch chair cushion. Her health failed until it was difficult to navigate the stairs & she stopped eating. We knew she was fulfilling her own 'bucket list' when she tried sleeping on the air bed with Jeremy & Robin & then Chris had her company in his bed. This was truly unusual from a cat who never slept with anyone or stayed on a lap more than 2 minutes. With ten in the house for Christmas week, Harley had a private goodbye with each of us.
Harley preferred sunshine, sleeping outdoors & drinking puddle water, she was a serious hunter & kept a collection of mice, voles & bird remains on the porch for us to enjoy. Sunning herself, she always managed to keep her hot black fur in the shade for serious naps.
Harley's hummer is silenced & it is awful quiet around here.
Half Shade Harley, photo 2008
Beautiful post.
ReplyDeleteHas she visited you in dreams? We lost our 15 year old female to renal failure November 1st.
Still have my sweet 'Boyfriend' Wendell, who will be 13 on April 5th.
There's no love like pet love.
It's been three months, but every time I put soap in the dishwasher, I look to see if her dishes are out. Harley's ghost flickers by on the porch whenever I turn the porchlight on or off!
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