It's time for me to admit I have a problem...

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He is very optimistic that I will change my mind about not sharing my lunch with him.

 

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Goofy boy!! His face, though

 

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All nestled down for his nap

 

[RoyalChick]

All nestled down for his nap

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Is that the nap he needs after a hard day of napping?
Or the nap to prepare him for a hard day of napping?
Maybe just a random nap.

 

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I'll take 'D. All of the Above'.

 

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This cat!!

 

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He's just so handsome

(but also is an expert at moving at the last second and making otherwise great pictures blurry )

 

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The lighting is kinda weird because of the time of day, but a handsome boy enjoying the fresh air through the window this evening

 

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I apologize in advance for the somber tone of this post. I'm... feeling some things today. Casper is fine, no worries there. This one is for my previous cat, Keiko.

One year ago yesterday, I spent the evening watching TV with her snuggled up on the couch next to me. She had been sick and wasn't herself for the past week or two, but we'd planned to contact the vet again in the morning and see if there was anything else they could do, if maybe taking her to the vet hospital in the area would be a good idea. Late in the night, I was tired and headed to bed. I didn't want to leave her, in fact I'd considered just sleeping on the couch beside her, but I knew my body would ache for it and decided it was better to sleep in my own bed. She was comfortable and warm where she was, and we had a plan for tomorrow. Things would be okay.

One year ago today, about 3:30 am, I was awakened by a knock on my bedroom door. It was my dad, telling me that Keiko had passed on. I couldn't believe it at first, quickly dressing and rushing down the stairs to the living room. But there she was, lying motionless on the chair, across the room from where I'd left her on the couch. Keiko was gone.

One year ago today, I got up in the morning, and for the first time was not greeted by her when I came down the stairs. For the first time, I didn't see her tucked away in her favorite spots to sleep. I didn't see her in the kitchen waiting for her insulin shot and treat. For the first time in many years, I was without my cat.

I cannot believe an entire year has passed. I have so many mixed feelings about those events last year. I would have given anything to save Keiko, to keep her here with me, but if she was still here when Casper showed up, would I have been able to keep him? Would he have joined the family as well or would we have decided we didn't have the room for him? Casper showed up about 3 weeks after Keiko passed on, and I felt so much guilt for taking him in because of how soon it was. I felt Keiko deserved so much more grieving, she was such an amazing cat. Yet Casper showed up and, well, he gave me a reason to smile again after those three long weeks. I've been told that he showed up for a reason, that Keiko sent him, all sorts of silly things like that. I don't really believe in that kind of thing, honestly. But I am so grateful that he showed up when he did, no matter why he did. Were it not for him, and of course the chickens demanding their breakfast every morning, I'm not sure if I would have found a reason to get out of bed most mornings this past year.

I haven't really been able to look at Keiko's pictures since around the time she passed, but I thought I would share some of my favorites of her in her honor today.

This was the last picture I took of her, one year ago yesterday, her snuggled up on the couch by me.

I guess I should have made a Keiko thread, too, years ago when we adopted her. I have so many more pictures of her... I'm so glad I have them to remember Keiko in all her glory. Her time with us was relatively short, about 6 years, but she really was a once in a lifetime cat.

 

[LaFleche]

Your Keiko was a real beauty and obviously very special! You are very talented as a photographer capturing her personality the way you did with these pictures.