| Sometimes, that one special cat comes along in our lives, the one that we know will always be a part of our soul, even after they are gone. It doesn;t matter how long we had this cat, whether it be a few short months or 15 years, somehow our hearts will always cry for them. Today is the day that my heart is crying. Ut;s hard to believe we lost her 2 years ago today. I swear I can still recall her meow and soft purr, the one I didn't know she had for the longest time, because you felt her purr, but she never made a noise. She was my heart cat and she could do no wrong in my eyes. her name was Takarra Tola and today I would like to take the time to remember her short life and share some of my memories of her.
Though this day is the hardest day for me, it's the one day I take the time to send out her message, the one that has kept her alive in my heart for 2 years and the one that has maybe even changed the way some of us look at the simple household chore of doing laundry. I tell this story every year because people come and go in these groups and I want her story heard by all. I want the world to know what happened to her, so maybe everyone else will slow down and not rush through life the way I did the day my sweet Takarra died, but before I turn this email into a tear jerker, I want to share some Takarra stories with everyone. This way you will see her for the Bengal she was, loving , sweet, funny, smart and yes, sometimes even mean. I don't want her face to be just a sad reminder, but rather rejoice in the 7 short months she had here on Earth. I remember the night I picked Takarra out. We had went wanting a silver male, but that would not be in our fate that night. As i peered into the box of six screaming kittens one stood out to me. She was the smallest but had the biggest eyes I had ever seen! She was a beautiful brown spotted Bengal. I reached in and picked her up and she just stared up at me. I knew it was love. Josh reached for a silver spotted, but he cried and wanted back in the box. Takarra sat on my shoulder as happy as can be, until Josh reached to put her back and hand me another kitten. Then she growled at him! Takarra was mine, and though we didn't know it at the time, she always would prefer me! Josh and I both agreed she was our kitten, and we would visit her often over the next 4 weeks until she came home. Always she clung to me and not Josh. I remember the day I brought her home. She sat in my lap all the way home! I had a roast waiting for us for dinner that night and this was the first time we would see Takarra's wild side! She stalked josh all the way to the table, waited for him to sit down before she pounced and off she took, with a chunk of roast as big as she was! She was growling like there was no tomorrow! I laughed and josh tried to take his roast back from her, fearing she would choke on a piece that big. What did takarra do, she bit his finger as hard as she could! That was HER kill! I thought for sure, Josh would make me return her! A few days later the tables were turned when we sat down to have tacos. Takarra wanted some and she wouldn't take no for an answer! She jumped into my taco, ate all the meat and cheese and left me only the beans and lettuce! It was Josh's turn to laugh that night! We spent many meals defending our food from our little wild thing, but more often than not, we sa still as she helped herself to our dinner, all the while growling at us like we were in her plate. We knew Takarra was smart. Almost right away she started walking on a leash and doing cute tricks. She grew very attached to a stuffed unicorn I had and she would carry it everywhere with her. It sat outside her litter box when she went and she always laid it in her food dish so it could have some dinner too! I even found it in the water dish a few times! Takarra love her little pink unicorn and cared for it as if it was real. Never once did she sleep without it either. I remember one night, it had to have been a month after we brought her home, Josh and I went to Red Lobster and I had left over shrimp. I came in, sat it down and went to the rest room. When I came back, I caught Takarra sniffing the carry out container. I watched her as she pressed the tab with her paw, opened it, gobbled up a few shrimp and closed the lid! Oh yeah, Takarra was a smart kitty, that was for sure! Then there was the time that Takarra taught me that cats understand more than we think. Josh had just became an over the road trucker and Mew was really missing him. He used to sit at the door and howl like a female in heat. This went on for months before it got to the point where I was grouchy and sleep deprived. One night I yelled out at Mew "Shut UP" and slammed my door shut. I knew this wasn't nice, but lack of sleep makes people mean! mew actually listened to me and it became a bit of a habbit after that. Well, one night, Takarra and I had just went to bed and she was curled up sleeping when Mew started in. I was too tired to yell at him, so Takarra did it for me! She got up, stuck her head out the door, let out her meanest sounding meow and pushed the door shut! There are so many more memorie I could share, happy ones, but I' sure no one here wants this email to turn into a novel, so I will leave the momories at that. I'll never forget the day she died. It was cold and rainy and as always I was running late for my niece's birthday party. I was trying to finish up laundry and not paying much attention to the cats. Somewhere between carrying the first 1/2 of the load and the second 1/2, Takarra got inside the dryer. I closed it and looked back to make sure Mew and Gemini were on the bed. I had thought Takarra was sleeping in the living room on her cat tree. She had been spayed 4 days before and I thought she must have been tired from that, because she wasn't herself. Later, as I think back, I think she may have actually been very sick. The food she had eaten all her life was part of the pet food recall that happened a few weeks later. Though I have no proof, I really think she was already dying and maybe crwled in there looking for warmth. Either way though, it doesn't excuse me for not looking for her and starting the dryer. Takarra died inside the dryer that night. I don't like to think how much she must have suffered in her final minutes, but I do know one thing, my heart has suffered the guilt of knowing I was the one who trapped her in there and sentanced her to die a painful death, my sweet Takarra who could do no wrong. How she must have hated me for ending her life, but I can't think about that now, because if I do, I will start crying and not stop. I still miss her so much, though I know had she not died I wouldn't have my sweet Kaidyn, Kimiko, Kameron or Zarek. Now comes the part where I hope takarra can make a difference in the lives of other cats. I'm begging every peson who reads this to take the time to check on the safety and well being of your cats. Bend over and look inside before you close the dryer. Then stop and find your cats with the dryer claosed to make sure they are all safe before you hit the button. Remember Takarra and protect your cats from the one machine that will take their lives. if you don't do it for me, them do it for my Takarra, my angel and the one cat who will always be a part of my heart. Thank You, Chanda Healton |
Yahoo! Groups TipsDid you know...Want your group to be featured on the Yahoo! Groups website? Add a group photo to Flickr. |
Having problems with message search?
Fill out this form to ensure your group is one of the first to be migrated to the new message search system.
|
Offline 
Send Email