Cat Heaven

“In the dream that awakened me, you had come and taken me to a sea of stars.  The cat stood in the flowers, two ears above.”

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Yesterday morning I awoke from a sweet dream.  In it, I was with my sweet kitty, Darby.  As Cody called it, A happy cat dream.  And I woke up and started to cry.  And I stood in the shower for a long time and cried.  That dream was a sweet, sweet message to me.  My kitty is gone.  And she sent me a dream because I asked her to.  (And my dog Pixie was in it, too.  Maybe that means she’s forgiven me.  And I know she was there to make sure I knew what the dream meant.)  It was the kind of dream you don’t want to wake up from.

There are not a lot of details.  Darby was here, and then she wasn’t.  No body in the road so I don’t think she met her end by a car.  I think she met it a bit more nobly, maybe defending her land and family from a big, mean predator, like a fox.  We shall never know.  But she has been gone for over a week, and I do believe she sent me that dream.  You can think that is silly if you like, but you’ll never be able to tell me otherwise.

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2001: I was at my parents’ house for the weekend and we stopped in a PetCo.  I, of course, was not looking for a cat.  But they had the adoption cages there full of kitties.  And there was Darby.  So darn cute.  And every time I pet her she would roll into my hand so hard she would end up rolling right into her water dish, then she would jump up and shake herself off and come back to be pet again.  She did it over and over.  I had to stay an extra night so I could adopt her in the morning.  I couldn’t not bring her into my life.

The day I brought her home. December 2001.

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Darby's the one in the coat.  Charlie's the one laughing at her.

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Darby was the kind of cat who makes cat-haters like cats.  She was super-friendly.  Just a big cutie-pie.  With how friendly she was, I think she thought she was a dog.  She loved her new home here in the country and preferred being outside stalking mice and keeping an eye on her domain.  And would always, always come running for love from wherever she was when her humans would come outside.

Goodbye, sweet Darby.  You are very loved and very missed.

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Darby

2001-2012

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