He's in a happy place

Foster's story began almost 14 years ago when he was brought home to live with Eric and his then-girlfriend. The relationship between Eric and the girl didn't last so the girl left but the kitty remained. When I entered the picture he was a couple years old yet still very much a kitten. I remember how he'd pace the perimeter of the bed, not sure what to do with this new person around. He would hide whenever someone new came around those first few years. My son will forever bear the scar on his face from the time Foster met up with him unexpectedly. My son was 11 weeks old and napping on the bed. Foster jumped up for a little nap too and landed on this tiny human, scaring himself so badly he jumped right back off and left a scar. Eventually, he got used to me, my cats and a new child every few years. His skittishness went away by the time our oldest got into the toddler stage. By then I guess he'd figured out that if he could handle a child, he could handle strangers too. For the past few years Foster has mellowed and become social and lovable with everyone he met. A couple months ago he even allowed our 1 year old neighbor to pat him (mostly by grabbing his head). I was amazed at how much he has gone through over the years and how laid back he'd become. Eric and I were convinced for a while he'd live forever.

About a month ago, Foster started to lose weight and slow down. We suddenly recognized that he wasn't as invincible as we thought. In early August I started to prepare myself to face Foster's eventual death. I did a lot of thinking about what he has brought to our family over the years and how much has changed since he was a kitten. He didn't seem to be suffering but he just wasn't the same and I knew I needed all the time I could get to get used to the idea of him not being around.

About a week ago he stopped eating. A couple of days ago he stopped drinking. As much as I felt I would be honoring his lifetime of achievement by letting him die naturally at home, Eric and I couldn't continue to watch him go on this way. It was a hard decision but today he was put to sleep. He would die either way, but hopefully we spared him some pain and discomfort, even if it was just a few hours.

We will miss him. He was the symbol of a lost era to us. The time when we were young and life was so different. A time when a 19 year old could still get joy out of naming a cat after a beer. He was the constant member of the family that was been with us before we were even a family. He moved at least 5 times in his life, always coming with us no matter where we landed. He watched other pets come and go but always kept that special place of honor as the first one. He was a good cat and he will never be forgotten.