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Princess, my treasured feline friend for 17 years
Early Spring 1983 - June 4, 2000
I had a few indoor/outdoor cats when I was a kid, and they usually only lived a couple years before being killed in some accident. So, when I was 14, my mother surprised me with this precious little ball of white fur. I immediately adored her and said, "No, I can't take her because she'll get killed like the others." My mom replied that this one would stay inside. So, with that settled, I agreed to take her.
Princess was born in the late winter or early spring of 1983, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I think she was barely weaned when I got her, because at night, when she was a kitten, she would try to nurse on my ears! From that, she developed the life-long habit of sleeping on my pillow. She was a mixed breed, and I never saw either of her parents. As a kitten, she was mainly all white. As she got older, her markings darkend into almost Birman or Ragdoll type markings, with calico coloring on the back of her right ear. Her hair was long and fresh smelling, and she had blue eyes that had a slight "shaking" motion. Her tail had seven kinks near the end, so she flopped it up-and-down like a furry club instead of waving it like many other cats do. (I’m the only person she allowed to examine those kinks, by the way!)
Princess had one litter of kittens during her lifetime (in 1984, with my sister's tomcat). They were all orange tabbies like their dad. She was more of a "one person" cat than a social cat. She prefered to stay “on the sidelines”, away from the noise and bustle of the family. She wasn't around children until she was several years old, when I started my family. I think that's why she preferred quiet places and adults. She would lay down in front of a heater vent, at a quiet edge of the room, and watch everything. When she thought it was time for bed, she would come get me. When I showered, she often sat and waited patiently near the tub. When she was a kitten she liked to sit on my shoulder. As an adult, she wasn't much for sitting on laps--she preferred to "touch hands", placing her paw on my hand. She liked having some "personal space", and gave others some space in return. (The only time she really broke out of her "personal space" was when I was sick with the flu and a 102 degree fever for two weeks. I was spending my days and nights sweating it out on the sofa. She was usually always close by. One night I woke up, sweating and drenched as usual, and found her laying on top of me chest-to-chest. I was so surprised that I let her stay there, even though her body heat was making me feel even more hot. I don't know why, after years of preferring some space, that she chose to do that then. But, it's one of my fond memories of her.) She was quick to find the source of what was going on, and figure things out. She also had a good sense of which animals were pets, and which weren't. She liked to watch birds from the window just like other cats. But, I could let pet birds loose in the house, and not have to worry about her hunting them. She would actually sit on the sofa with a pet bird, like it was another cat or dog... except if the bird came too close she would move away. I fed her canned food during her last few years becase she no longer had teeth to chew the dry food. Her favorite flavor was tuna.
She was with me through the ups-and-downs of high school, my busy college years, plus my getting married and having my own kids. But, after all those years, her body just finally got old and gave out. The vet warned me it was only a matter of time, so I was able to make some preparations. The bedroom basically became like an "old folks home" for her. During her last couple days I gave her around-the-clock care, waiting on her, and sleeping with her wherever she chose to sleep. (She didn't have the strength to jump up on the bed to lay on my pillow, and I didn't want her to hurt herself trying to jump down, so we ended up camping out wherever she wanted those last couple nights.) She never appeared to be in pain, so I just let nature take it's course. She died in the comfort of her bed, with me sitting beside her. I miss her much, and wish she was here. But, I believe she is someplace beautiful now, without illness or old age, and happy... and that I will see her again on "the other side".
Midi: "One Sweet Day" by Mariah Carey