Saturday Snapshot ~ Kiki's obituary ~ on Caturday

The moon is visible in the morning cky (click to enlarge)

All I was able to write yesterday was R.I.P. ~ Kiki, but she was so much a person that it feels like she should have an obituary and I should be planning a big memorial service for her friends to attend.  And she did have friends.  When people came to visit, she would join us in the living room and mingle with the crowd.  She truly loved people.  When Donna and I opened a bookstore, Kiki took seriously her job as bookstore cat.  She would wander around and visit with customers and book club participants.

Kiki working on her blog post

Unlike other cats, she would look at me when I spoke her name.  Sometimes, she would respond with a meow, as if saying, "Yes?"  She was a talkative kitty, but seemed to know we take turns.  She let me talk, then would answer.  When I said "treats" with a question in my voice, she would widen her eyes and say "Meow!"

Need I translate?  (No, I didn't think you'd need any help.)

She loved to be outside and would often sit at the door waiting to go out on our patio.  Yesterday morning, hours after her crying in pain woke me at 4:30 a.m., I sat on the patio with Kiki dying on the cool concrete at my feet, rubbing behind her ears and waiting for the vet to arrive at her office.  And I noticed the moon still in the sky.  Kiki didn't look up, didn't move when laughing neighbors walked within a few feet of us as they passed on their way to work, didn't turn her head to see chirping birds in the grass, didn't look at the squirrel chattering at her from the tree.  She didn't see the moon as the sun crept higher toward 8:00 o'clock, 8:15, 8:30 when we left for our 9:00 o'clock emergency appointment with the vet.  We were early, but Kiki died on the table at exactly 9:00 a.m.  She was revived, but couldn't make it.  When the vet said some vital organ had burst within her, I said, "Let her go."  Because they had "shocked" her heart back to life, the vet had to euthanize her, a few minutes past 9:00 a.m.  I was with her to the end, and I loved her so much.  She was the most loving cat I have ever known.

The vet and the assistant each hugged me as I cried.  And for two days now, condolences have been pouring in for Kiki from her friends.  Here are some who knew her in person:

Ginnie:  "Bonnie, i am so sorry. She was a very special person, and I do mean person. She loved you and comforted you and entertained you through twelve years of dramatic changes in your life. She will be missed."

Emily:  "Oh Bonnie, I miss her too. She was such a special kitty. Sending hugs to you, but can't help crying with you too."  (Then Emily called to cry on the phone with me.)

Ellen:  "I'm so sorry to hear this, Bonnie. I'm thinking of you."

Martha, a great lover of cats:  "Bonnie, I am so sorry about Kiki. I know how much you loved her and what a great companion she was. I DO understand what you are going through."

Card from our roommate Donna:

"In their eyes, we see a loving soul,
and in our hearts,
we know we'll never have a finer friend."

Donna wrote in that card:  "She loved so freely, but especially loved you.  You were her soul mate.  I loved her ... for so many things, but one truly large reason was the fact that she taught Sammy how to love to the best of Sammy's ability.  Sammy has lost much of her feral nature because of watching you and Kiki's so very special relationship. ... Kiki died knowing you loved her.  Remember that and savor her gentleness."

Sammy looking for Kiki, bewildered.

Sammy, Donna's cat, keeps searching for Kiki and wandering to the love seat where Kiki chose to rest during the last days of her life, saying, "Meow?" as if asking, "Where is she?  Where?"

Sylvia:  "I am very sorry, Bonnie. I know she was a faithful companion through many ups and downs and all the in-betweens."

Carol: "I'm so sorry about Kiki, love you!"

Laura:  "Oh, no!  So sad, Bonnie. You all had lived together a long time. Peace for you both."

Paula:  "Bonnie, I am so sorry to hear about Kiki.  You must be quite sad about this."

Lex:   "So sad, kitties are the best companions and some of the most precious personalities in our lives."

Card from the vet:

"Good friends leave paw prints and fond memories in our heart ... Our Sincerest Sympathy ... We share in your sadness and understand the loss you are feeling."

And here are some who knew Kiki only online:

Madge:  "Sad to hear but she came to the right house. She was loved and loved back."

Susan:  "oh no! so sorry to hear this, thinking of you today Bonnie {hugs}"

Margreet, in the Netherlands:  "Honey, I'm so sorry for your loss.  I know how much Kiki meant to you.  Love you."

Brenda:  "So, so sorry, Bonnie."

Nancy, another cat lover:  "Oh, no! I'm so sorry, Bonnie. I know how much you loved Kiki. (((HUGS))) "

Kathryn:  "Aw Bonnie, I am sorry to hear this. Such a beautiful cat and fine companion. Hang in there."

Jeannie:  "So sorry, Bonnie!"

Margaret:  "So sorry that Kiki is no longer with us, but she's needed elsewhere to give light, love, hugs, and soft paws for the universe.  I know you miss her sweet presence."

Jan:  "I am so sorry, Bonnie."

Helen:  "Oh Bonnie, I am so sorry to hear about Kiki! I know how much she meant to you and will miss her presence on your blog. I hope you doing alright."

"Her presence on this blog," Helen said.  You did know, didn't you, that Kiki was a reader (aren't photos proof of that?) and reviewed books on some Caturdays.  She wrote about Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicki Myron, but Kiki's favorite book was The Silliest Cat by Gilles Bachelet — click on the titles to read her reviews.

And this obituary wouldn't be complete without mentioning that Kiki's hobby was bird watching.  Look carefully in the photo below to see the baby bird on the windowsill.

Click to enlarge, and look for a little yellow beak.

Do you remember Kiki wanted a bird feeder like Sammy's?  She told the whole world, so I got her a double feeder for her birthday in April.  It has a hanger for birdseed on one side and a hanger for suet on the other.  Kiki's eyes would dart to the fluttering wings as birds arrived to feed outside our bedroom window.

In Kiki's introduction to this blog in 2008, I called her a con artist who could lie for a good cause.  That single paragraph was the introduction to a book review, but my favorite part is what I wrote in a comment below that post:

One of KKi's frequent kisses

Today a friend sent me an email about how loving dogs are, while cats aren't ... because they believe you are there to serve them. I wrote back and told her about this time from Kiki's early years with me:

I had been out of town for 3 or 4 days. I had left plenty of food and water, which works for a cat, who eats what she needs and saves the rest. When I got home and opened the door to the kitchen, Kiki ran past me like crazy through the garage to the driveway, happy to be outside again. But she stopped suddenly, turned around, ran back and "kissed" me by licking my chin. Then she felt free to run out into the glorious sunshine.

You may laugh about cats ignoring you, but Kiki loves me and remembered to welcome me home with a kiss before she went outside to smell the fresh air and play. As I've said before, she is the most loving cat I've ever had. I feel blessed to be loved by Kiki.

~~~ Kiki's best friend, Bonnie

Kiki had her own way of ending her Caturday posts.  Here it is, one last time, and it's even a Caturday.  (Oh, shucks, now I've made myself cry.)


Kiki Cat, signing off



(Links to other Saturday Snapshots are here.)