Goodbye, Sweet Boy

This afternoon, our cat Salem passed away. He was 16 and had been getting weaker for a while now. His death was peaceful. He wasn't in pain or scared. He got to be home with us and one of our other cats was sitting right by him. He'd been petted and held today and he knew he was loved. I am happy he had a peaceful end to his life, but it is heartbreaking to know he's gone.

Salem wasn't always my cat. He was born in a house in Heavener, Oklahoma to the stepchildren of a friend of mine. My current roommate and his THEN roommate decided to adopt some of the kittens. The former roommate picked out Salem's brother (who would be named Julian) and my roommate picked out this lovely ball of tuxedo fluff. The children cried when we took them. Even as kittens, they were loved.

They were also infected with ringworm, which transmitted to my roommate, his roommate, and me. I'd never had ringworm before and plan to never have it again. Sometimes when cats give you gifts, it's not something you'd really want to keep. I adored the kittens and would play with them (as much as they would let me) whenever I could come over. They were fairly indifferent to me, except for that time Julian stole a hairband out of my hair.

Salem soon gained the nickname Fluffy . . .because he was fluffy and it suited his personality. Even though I knew his name was Salem, in my head, he is always Fluffy or Fluff. He liked to be brushed. You know, that's always iffy with cats. Some love it, others would rather claw your eyes out than be brushed. He would sometimes go to the brush and rub his face against it and purr. Any time you wanted him to come to you, all you had to do was hold up the brush.

He also had a list of food he loves. Yogurt, cheese, ice cream (especially chocolate), ribs, tuna, and french fries. He only wanted the french fries that were soft though. Whenever we'd get them, we'd pick out the soft ones for him and toss them over. He was always deeply happy with that. Fluff was pretty independent of us, though he did enjoy some cuddle time. He was very social with the other cats though. He tended to be the first one to warm up to any new cat that came in the house and would purt and talk to them before the others. For the most part, he was a pretty happy cat.

It's difficult to even begin to process how to make the transition in your life when you've known someone for 16 years and suddenly you'll never see them again. I ache about it. It's a huge loss. I'm comforted by the fact that I know he's at peace, but he will be very missed by me. Goodbye, Fluff. I hope where ever you are, there is a great hairbrush for you. Love you.