Thursday, April 10, 2014

#ThrowbackThursday: The Memorial Wall


I've been looking for a way to participate in the Throwback Thursday phenomenon and haven't been sure how to do it. After all, Truffles has only been with me for 7 months and her every movement has been documented here since the day I brought her home. Tara continues to be a presence here as well, so I decided that maybe I should use Throwback Thursday as a way to blog about the previous cats in my life.

In the hallway right outside my bedroom is the little memorial wall you see above. These are the three cats that were in my life prior to Tara. She hasn't made the wall yet because I have memorials to her elsewhere in the house.

Here is a brief introduction to each. I will be posting about them more as I go through boxes and boxes of old photos.

* Patch is the yellow tabby on top (February 1, 1976-August 15, 1991) He was actually my parents' first baby, as he came into their lives a year and a half before I was born. He was abandoned as a three month old kitten on my father's family dairy farm and my future grandmother, knowing how much my Mom loved cats, asked if she'd like to take him home. Prior to Patch my Mom had been over a decade without a cat in her life! He was my constant companion growing up, laying in one corner of my bed while a stack of books sat in the other. We lost him to a brain tumor at age 15.

* Sebastian is the gray boy directly beneath Patch (1993-January 8, 1997) This little guy was a neighborhood rescue. Left behind by one neighbor when they moved, he ended up in the care of an elderly couple across the road from us. When the wife passed away, a gold digger moved in on the husband and we feared the cat was on his way out. Over a period of months we turned him into a wonderful housecat after spending the majority of his life outside. Sadly he was already in his teens by this point and we lost him way too soon to kidney disease.

* The angel in the purple "Meow" frame was my first little girl, Sashi (March 31, 1998-February 15, 2006) Sashi was also the first cat I "chose" by adopting her from a local rescue group at PetSmart. She had been given up by her family at 9 years old. We were told many people thought she was beautiful but passed her by because of her age. We had nearly 8 wonderful years together before she succumbed to stomach cancer. I'd always loved cats, but Sashi was my first cat as an adult that was truly "mine". Losing her just about killed me and I thought my heart would never heal. Then I met Tara.

So there you have it, the 3 cats that came before Tara and Truffles. They all took a part of my heart when they left and will never be forgotten.

Do you keep photos and mementos of the pets that are no longer with you?

13 comments:

Shirley said...

Yes, I have lots of pictures of my current and former kitties in several photo albums.

GLOGIRLY said...

I sure do! Nicki is the kitty that came before Katie & Waffles. He was (and still is in my heart) a very special boy.
xo GG

Lone Star Cats said...

We have photos of all the kitties and pups who've come before up around here.

The Island Cats said...

What a nice way to remember the cats that came before. Yes, our mom has framed pictures of the cats that came before us.

Katiez Furry Mewz said...

Thanks for sharing the kitties that are still in your heart and on your wall... Those sweethearts were so blessed to have you in their lives, even if a short while. (At the bottom of my blog, you can see some of the kitties that came before.) Purrz, Katie Kat.

Fur Everywhere said...

I've been fortunate not to have lost a cat (yet) as an adult. My choldhood kitty passed away from kidney disease, and I loved her so very much. I have pictures of her in my photo albums, and I even got my senior pictures in high school taken with her :)

Thank you for sharing about the kitties in your life. I can tell how much you loved each one. <3

Lisa Kolosey said...

Awww...thank you for sharing your kitties that came before. We keep pictures and their box of ashes. There's an awesome pet crematorium near us that does wonderful and loving work proving a swath of fur and paw print with their ashes. We have way too many...

~LisaCo9T

CatInTheFridge said...

I haven't lost a kitty yet, thankfully, but I do keep a photo of my darling Basil the rat right next to me in a frame by my desk. It's nice to see them watching over us, especially when we miss them so.

Cat and DOG Chat With Caren said...

Love that idea! When my Angel Bobo passed I was inconsolable. What brought me much comfort, was that I immediate went to Target and bought THREE multiple photo frames (each frame holds a minimum of 10 photos), Bobo and I shared 18 glorious years so I had more than enough photos to put in the frames. I hung them in various places in our home (this was in 2007 and they are still up and will always be). I also bought a clock that has 8 slots for photos....guess who is on it? Bobo!

katsrus said...

Very lovely post. I have many photos of my kitties in photo albums. I also have a special area for my last 2 that were with me for over 20 yrs.
Sue B

Mariodacatsmom said...

It is so nice to meet your furbabies (past and present) - such beautiful kitties too. It is so hard when it comes time to say goodbye to them when they have to cross that bridge. I've had to help 5 dear pets cross now and each one was very hard. I don't even want to think about Mario having to make that journey. Because he is on social media and well known, it is going to be even more difficult. But he has also brought so much joy to us. Hopefully he'll be around quite a few more years.

Kitty Cat Chronicles said...

They all sound wonderful! You were all lucky to have each other :) Losing a pet is always hard. The pictures you have up are beautiful though! A great way to remember them. I have a picture of my past kitty on my dresser in my bedroom :)

A Tonl said...

A purrfectly pawesome #TT! Yes, we do too. We have a memorial scrapbook for when Ryker passed away a few years ago. And our grandhuman gave us this beautiful angel kitty we use as a doorstop for the kitty who came before him!