Year Seven

It was seven years ago today that we lost our sweet boy Oliver.

Soon after he died, I sat down and wrote out a list of things I remembered about him.  I'm glad I did, as some things faded as time passed.

** I found him online while looking at an adoption website. When I got to the adoption center, he was sitting by the door, as though he were waiting for me.

** He would sleep on the bed or cat cubby with one leg hanging out over the edge.

** If he wanted pettings, he would arch up to bump his head against your hand.

** He liked to sleep in shoeboxes.

** We think he was at least part Norwegian Forest Cat, and he had tufts on the bottom of his feet.  When he tried to start running, he would sometimes slide or stay in place while getting traction.

**  I had an old flannel robe that had been my dad's draped over the foot of the bed, and he enjoyed sleeping on it.

**  Our other cat Willow had a stuffed green and orange fish that was her favorite.  If Oliver wanted to mess with her, he would pick up that fish and start honking to get her attention.

**  He liked to sleep arched over my head and liked eating my hair.

**  He knew when it was 11 p.m. which was dinner time.

** Sometimes he sounded like he was saying "hello" when he'd meow.

**  He loved - LOVED - ham.

**  He would get into the bathtub and scramble around wildly.

**  If he thought his cat friend Duncan wasn't feeling well, he would "mind" Duncan and mother him.

**  We hadn't had him long, and there was a time when we couldn't find him.  We were panicking and all the while, he was lying in the crow's nest on the cat tree, watching us.

**  He seemed to enjoy running down the stairs in front of me.

I'm glad we had the chance to know him and to love him.  But it still hurts to have lost him, even after all this time.