There is a bridge connecting Heaven and Earth. It is called The Rainbow Bridge because of its many colors. Just this side of The Rainbow Bridge there is a land of hills, flower-filled meadows, and valleys with lush green grass.
When a beloved pet dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to the Rainbow Bridge. The meadows and hills are for all our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water, and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.
All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or frail are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.
They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; his eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.
You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.
Then you cross the Rainbow Bridge, together.........
GOOD BYE SLY
I Remember
To my beautiful little Maine Coon tabby, Sly. You’re gone.
You were the most challenging pet that I have ever had but also one of the most interesting and unique!
Your scratching furniture, your leaving tufts of hair all over the house (dark green carpet/silver hair - not good), your very, very vocal demands to go out and for food.
You would come and bump your head against my leg if you wanted to be fed and strut to the food dish looking back to make sure I was following you.
You would take your paw and hit the door when you wanted to go out. always with a loud meow.
When you came in you always announced yourself with a very, very loud meow and I knew you were a happy cat as your big fluffy tail was always in the air..
You would go out the front door and trot over to the fence between Sarah and Ray’s and walk down the railroad tie and then come to the back door and want in, or the other way around back and forth. I was just staff letting you in and out. ha ha
You would come up in the night and sleep next to me, stretch out so your back legs would touch me or curl up and hide your nose under your tail.
In the morning when you realized I was awake you would roll on your back, meow and want your chin and belly rubbed and purr like crazy.
I loved how you would curl up on your chair and I would pet you as I went by, always with a meow!
For the last year you started to take over my office chair, and of course gladly left little silver hairs all over the place.
You loved to sit on my computer printer and especially enjoyed the sheets of paper coming out when I was printing. I had to keep you from putting your paws in the printer..
You were so finicky when it came to eat. what you liked one day you did not like another.
I loved when you would lie on your back and twist your front one way and the other half of your body the other way with your paws in the air.
You loved to yawn! You loved to stretch! You loved catnip..stoner cat!
You would come down for breakfast and stretch up and take your top paws and scratch (to my dismay) my counter edge.
You loved chasing ice cubes. every time you would hear ice coming out of the refrigerator you would come running.
The sound of a can of cat food being opened. my, my that would get your attention. You would sit politely in front of your cat dish waiting for your food..and then yell if you wanted more.
You loved to hang your front paws over the edge of the stairs and balcony
If there was a storm you liked to go out on the front steps and hide under the chairs where the rain could not get you..
When it was windy and you wanted out it took you some time to learn to face the wind. with that huge tail acting as a sail you would fly across the back yard..it was very amusing!
You were such a scared cat. When I twice rescued dogs you hid in the basement for the entire time and then after they were gone I had to go and get you to come up. Squeak on the other hand was more brave as he wanted to get to his food dish. Squeak has never been fond of being too far from his food dish and no damn dog was going to get in the way!
You would only drink from a running faucet, this drove me crazy and you got Squeak to do the same thing. drat!
In the fall your job was to bring in as many leaves on your tail and long hair as you could and distribute them all over the carpet!
In the hot summer I would get you a lion cut where only your head, paws and tail were left with long hair. one year I had your tail cut too except for the end and you repaid me with using it as a tom, tom drum on the carpet - my mistake
My neighbors loved watching you visit. I had many stories from them. Sarah, Ray, Michael, Carolyn, Kathy and others..Mike Love said you use to come and sit in his window well and watch the squirrels.
Squeak misses you. He has not been eating which is very unusual for him, so I bought sliced turkey from the deli, that did the job.
Christopher and May Dee who watched you and Squeak when I was traveling last year brought a rose bush for me to plant in the back yard in your memory. They were wonderful pet sitters.. you got out once and they and their neighbors come to search for you. Eventually you came home. According to Sarah it was quite an outing in the neighborhood that evening. LOL
The last time I heard your voice you were running and screaming by the backyard. You did not come home.
When I found you last Monday night in the middle of the greenbelt, I instantly knew it was you. I put you in a towel and brought you home for your last night and then in the morning put you out in the back yard where you loved to play and roam and watch the squirrels and then I took you to be cremated. You had fun in the five and a half years you were here. You had a great life! You loved going out. I wish not so much.
Good bye Sly, I will never forget you. MEOW! DavidKilled by a coyote 8:30 pm, June 27, 2009 Found 8:00 pm June 29th, 2009Printed with permission of the author, David Pritchard, in the hopes that others may be encouraged to keep their cat indoors.