A Girl and Her Cat

My oldest and dearest friend of 19-years left earth today. There's something special and sweet about a pet's soul.  They have so much love to give and they share it in the simplest ways.  They're light little puffs of light to each day.  

Bobbie was my first pet that I ever had.  I got him when I was 18-months-old and we had a thick bond from the beginning.  He was one of those rare gems of a cat with the loyalty and tendencies of a dog.  He lived outside, and since we were in the country I spent most of my childhood days outdoors playing.  

He'd follow me on all my adventures.  I'd go fishing in our pond - well he'd be sitting right beside me to see what I'd catch (or more likely didn't).  I'd go walking in our woods, and 10 feet behind me there he was coming to join.  He came with me on all my photo shoots, and I've had to Photo Shop his tail out of a lot of the final images.  

There was a tree in my front yard that on the 2^nd large branch up to the left there was a nook against the trunk that fit the spine of my back perfectly.  This made for a fantastical knitting escape, and I would climb up and knit for hours in elementary school.  It was deemed the title “The Knitting Tree” by everyone in my family.  No one bothered me when I was there, and I was able to focus on what I was doing: needle in through the front, yarn over, pull through, slip the stitch off, repeat all afternoon long.  

Of course, 5 minutes into knitting, I hear this scratching noise and of course it's Bobbie climbing up the tree to see what I'm working on.  He'd sit to the branch next to mine and keep me company as I knit, purl, knit, till someone called me inside. Then we'd both hop down from our spots and walk back to the house together, 

The Knitting Tree

Bobbie also had the appetite of a dog.  I had a routine of swinging in a tree in my backyard at least once a day.  One time I was swinging and snacking on some Saltine crackers when Bobbie hopped up on my lap and nudged me with such a fervor that I just had to give him a part of a cracker.  He LOVED it.  From there I tested other foods on his palette and found that he enjoyed peanuts, mini marshmallows, and completely flipped for raisins.  Again the loyalty and appetite of a dog.  

He was also the best listener.  Whenever my brother Daniel was in the hospital I'd go outside and talk to Bobbie about it.  He was always there to lend a listening whisker as I rubbed his sweet spot between his ears.  

Losing a pet is, of course, not as severe as many other sad things that happen in life, but I decided to share these memories, because it's still worth taking a moment to remember a dear sweet soul that is no longer on earth today.

Bobbie, you were the best cat, dog, knitting/saltine eating companion a girl could ask for.  All the peace in the world little friend <3>