Miles
Little Miles, saved only because she was the runt of the litter. As her brothers and sisters ventured out to play...something lurked from the ground, or maybe from the sky above...taking innocence with them. One little white and black kitty remained; too afraid to come out from the shed - hiding in the deepest, darkest space in the corner.
When I took her in my arms, as tiny as she was - she buried her head in the crook of my arm. When the kids held her, she found safety as they cupped her head in their hand. Then she relaxed.
A new found safety and freedom....the house; with a new mom (me). The mom had disappeared weeks earlier. We tried to feed the kittens, and then I received a phone call from our neighbor. At their place was a mom with no kittens. As I drove up, hoping against hope that somehow the mommy had made it across the way; but hope was lost. It was a stray mom, with no babies. Who knows what mother nature had gotten away with, but this mommy would soon have some hungry baby kitties to take care of. She actually laid down, and here came the babies, happy for a mommy. Whatever happened to her, may have been the same fate as the original mommy, and the babies. But in the end, there was only the little white and black kitty.
That was in about 2000-2001. Josh would have been in his soph/jun year in high school. He named her Miles.
So it's been a loving 13-14 years with the softest little kitty in the world. If you been to our home, you've probably met Miles first hand, as she jumped up on your lap; and if you didn't give her a push off your lap, but a friendly rub on the head or back...you were doomed with left over Miles hair on your clothes. She loved attention and had the most unique prrrrrrr. We found out in September of 2013, that she had some abnormal valve stuff going on in her, she was probably born with it. That is also when we began doctoring her for different ailments. Calvin came up with a miracle drug...one minute she was hanging on to life, and in 2 days, she was running and chasing with Snickers; taking on the dogs; and loving life. We had 3 different med bouts since September of last year, but this last one did not work it's magical tricks. Her body was tired, her lungs giving way to more problems than she wanted.
It was exactly 5 days ago when we started the 3rd round of special mix meds. In 2 days she was standing straight up, biscuitting the chopping block. My hopes were high. And then last night she took a turn for the worse; her breathing was labored, her walk was staggered. As she tried to sleep on the cat bed in the living room, 'mom' pulled up the dog bed, threw a blanket over it, and lay beside Miles, trying to bring her some comfort. I was going to take a trip to visit Calvin today, but I hated to move her and take her into the cold; she was finally laying peacefully most of the day.
Cadence came down after school, and she laid on the floor as she watched me give Miles some water through the little syringe. Her eyes welled up with tears, and she lay there, softly crying. We sat in Grandpa's rocker and talked about all the fun we've had with Miles. She remembered Grandpa Don Odell sitting with Miles in his lap at the table and petting her over and over. We talked about how Idda would pick on Miles, but now soon - Idda would be there to greet Miles and they would now be friends. We cried together, my sweet little granddaughter and me. I told her she could say good-bye to Miles if she wanted to, because even though it was hard on us, Miles was going to be so much happier in heaven, and she would probably be able to go there soon. Cadence said if I took her into the vets, she wanted to go with me.
We got down on the floor again, she told Miles good-bye. I asked her if she wanted to say a prayer for Miles. Yes. She folded her hands together, bowed her head, and listened to Grandma's prayer. We asked God to let Miles peacefully stop breathing, so she could go to heaven - and not be sick any longer. We told God we would miss Miles, but we knew He would take care of her better than any of us could. As we were finished praying, I am not kidding you one bit....we watched Miles intently, and I truly think it was only a minute or so.... I said, "Cadence, I think God already answered our prayer." She agreed. He did.
And so with that, I say good-bye to my beautiful little Miles. Until we see you again, enjoy running with those that have gone before. I'll miss you being in the midst of our lives. You may be only a cat to some, but for years you've been our sweet little Miles. In our hearts, you will always be.
Miles
Gone to heaven on Friday, February 7, 2014
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