Despite the best efforts of all of us, owners, vet, and Bootsie; we had to let our wonderful Bootsie slip away while he was still under anesthetic only a very short time ago. What they found in his mouth besides the rotten teeth was too much for him to wake up to, we thought - probable cancer, very aggressive and nasty looking, so we let our pet, our friend and companion of many years, leave this life without more pain, to fly free. We will miss him sorely.
Although most religious material is somewhat mum on the subject of animals even having souls, I believe that God was not so stingy that way and gave them something a little more pure, more innocent and unrefined, than what we humans take so easily for granted and destroy with our own actions and words with so little thought or regard. Bootsie certainly had a great deal of love in his heart - I was on the receiving end of his affections many times, he was able to express concern for his people, as well as a variety of other apparent emotions and emotive processes that all lead me to the one conclusion the says, "SOUL." If there is anything this cat "owner" can do to help her pet find his way into the afterlife, it will be done, albeit with tears and heartbreak, sad thoughts and many empty hours for days to come.
He had beautiful golden eyes and loved to purr and rub - it was his way of snuggling. I went over to see him this morning and we had a "snuggle and purr" session that I wish could have lasted longer, but then I would have been in the way as the vet's office became busier with the needs of the day, so I had to leave, too early; too early.
To Bootsie
I wish I could sing for you, my friend
A song to take you to Heaven and back again
A chant to keep you free and clear
Of any obstacles you may now have to fear
Although I hope there are few, or none,
To block your trip to your new, and better,
Pain-free, home.
A lullaby to let you know, to remind,
Of the heartfelt memories and genuine love
You must leave behind, but please,
Take some small piece of my unworthy human heart.
Remember me, my loving friend
Though, in this life,
We must part.
Love,
Momcat
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
My Cats Are My Kids
Unlike many of my contemporaries and one of my younger siblings, I never managed to procreate. Instead I have pussycats and right now the oldest one is at the vet's waiting for dental surgery tomorrow afternoon.
Bootsie is a sweetheart of a kitty with big, intelligent eyes and a gentle demeanor that is belied by his habit of picking on the other kitties because he is the biggest and can. I am, for the moment, calm but have been crying on and off because I am so worried about him. Not only is Bootsie positively antique for a cat, he is also in kidney failure - though stable and not in apparent pain, may be hyperthyroid - with an elevated heart rate that is a concern to our vet, and has a miserable infection from several broken off and rotten teeth that need to be removed in order to get completely rid of the infection - hence the dental surgery. I know there are some very powerful arguments for having an animal in this condition put down but I hesitate for one reason only, Bootsie does not seem to WANT to be "put down." He is still eating very well and loving being loved, so if we can get him through the surgery without incident (or, at least, alive) and get this infection cleared up, he may yet have several months during which we can love, adore, pamper and treasure our beloved "Boo-zilla." We won't know what's up until later tomorrow, so I sit here and type in the interim, hoping and praying for a feline miracle for my wonderful and loving pet.
It occurs to me that I may have embarrassed the vet tech this evening when I told Boots that "Mum mum will see you tomorrow." I do have some sense of humor about my besottedness where my cats are concerned but, as stated before, they are my only babies, my only children, which makes my emotional investment in them perhaps a little more intense than might have been the case otherwise; I really cannot say for certain, having always loved cats from the time I was a small child.
I do know that my unconditional love for my cats has everything to do with their unconditional love and acceptance for me and their absolute lack of evil or sin - those are things only for people to know in their hearts. Always innocent, I am ever mindful of their place in my life and their trust and need for my care for them, which I sometimes fail to render with sufficient concern or energy, due mostly to a lack of energy of my own or true ignorance as to what it is that is ailing them.
There, my "Mommy" creed and true confessions of a cataholic. I do not wish to ever take any of it back.
Izzlebug
Bootsie is a sweetheart of a kitty with big, intelligent eyes and a gentle demeanor that is belied by his habit of picking on the other kitties because he is the biggest and can. I am, for the moment, calm but have been crying on and off because I am so worried about him. Not only is Bootsie positively antique for a cat, he is also in kidney failure - though stable and not in apparent pain, may be hyperthyroid - with an elevated heart rate that is a concern to our vet, and has a miserable infection from several broken off and rotten teeth that need to be removed in order to get completely rid of the infection - hence the dental surgery. I know there are some very powerful arguments for having an animal in this condition put down but I hesitate for one reason only, Bootsie does not seem to WANT to be "put down." He is still eating very well and loving being loved, so if we can get him through the surgery without incident (or, at least, alive) and get this infection cleared up, he may yet have several months during which we can love, adore, pamper and treasure our beloved "Boo-zilla." We won't know what's up until later tomorrow, so I sit here and type in the interim, hoping and praying for a feline miracle for my wonderful and loving pet.
It occurs to me that I may have embarrassed the vet tech this evening when I told Boots that "Mum mum will see you tomorrow." I do have some sense of humor about my besottedness where my cats are concerned but, as stated before, they are my only babies, my only children, which makes my emotional investment in them perhaps a little more intense than might have been the case otherwise; I really cannot say for certain, having always loved cats from the time I was a small child.
I do know that my unconditional love for my cats has everything to do with their unconditional love and acceptance for me and their absolute lack of evil or sin - those are things only for people to know in their hearts. Always innocent, I am ever mindful of their place in my life and their trust and need for my care for them, which I sometimes fail to render with sufficient concern or energy, due mostly to a lack of energy of my own or true ignorance as to what it is that is ailing them.
There, my "Mommy" creed and true confessions of a cataholic. I do not wish to ever take any of it back.
Izzlebug
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Japan
After waiting several days for the initial shock and grief to wear away enough for rational thought to prevail, I am still not certain that is the case, I now put "pen to paper," so to speak. It has been about thirty years since the last time I was in touch with any of the few people from Japan I have been acquainted with in the past; thirty years since their names and faces have crossed my mind at all. In the past several days, since the reports of the earthquake and tsunami, however, their faces are what come most immediately to my mind as I hope that they are all, somehow, OK following this terrible disaster in their native land. A short-term friend, two professors, a study partner, and a childhood Brownie Girl Scout companion; all Japanese or of Japanese descent with only one of them likely still here in the United States.
My "short-term friend" is named Kenji. He was here for a short while attending a class at one of our universities before returning to Japan and his employment as an executive in Japan's steel industry. He wrecked his knee playing soccer while he was here and that gave us the opportunity to get to know one another somewhat, otherwise he would have been off playing all sorts of sports and too busy to bother taking time to speak to an overly shy American like me - at the time. Upon his returning to Japan I presented him with a Gummy Rat for his nephews. I hope all of them are now safe and well. I hope none of his family have been lost to this horrible occurrence and that they will be able to overcome this time and thrive once more.
To my former language professors and my former study partner, I wish the same things. I know my professors were not impressed with my efforts or skills, but I know my study partner and I parted as friends. I hope she and her family are safe following all of the upheavals of the past several days. I wish I could send her that hug we both felt like giving one another but didn't because it would not have been "the thing to do" in the middle of the UNH campus at the time.
The rest of my response to what is happening is still in the "Dear God!" range, so I will continue to wait; wait for some form of coherant thought, for some sort of peace, for a calming of my heart, but that will likely never occur or at least not for a very long time. My thoughts and prayers are with Japan right now and my hopes are for a speedy recovery and many wonderful rescues and reunions despite all of the losses and horrors still being discovered.
Izzlebug
My "short-term friend" is named Kenji. He was here for a short while attending a class at one of our universities before returning to Japan and his employment as an executive in Japan's steel industry. He wrecked his knee playing soccer while he was here and that gave us the opportunity to get to know one another somewhat, otherwise he would have been off playing all sorts of sports and too busy to bother taking time to speak to an overly shy American like me - at the time. Upon his returning to Japan I presented him with a Gummy Rat for his nephews. I hope all of them are now safe and well. I hope none of his family have been lost to this horrible occurrence and that they will be able to overcome this time and thrive once more.
To my former language professors and my former study partner, I wish the same things. I know my professors were not impressed with my efforts or skills, but I know my study partner and I parted as friends. I hope she and her family are safe following all of the upheavals of the past several days. I wish I could send her that hug we both felt like giving one another but didn't because it would not have been "the thing to do" in the middle of the UNH campus at the time.
The rest of my response to what is happening is still in the "Dear God!" range, so I will continue to wait; wait for some form of coherant thought, for some sort of peace, for a calming of my heart, but that will likely never occur or at least not for a very long time. My thoughts and prayers are with Japan right now and my hopes are for a speedy recovery and many wonderful rescues and reunions despite all of the losses and horrors still being discovered.
Izzlebug
Wednesday, March 02, 2011
The Supreme Court Clarifies Things Once Again - Life is Still a Two-Way Street!
According to a recent news story received via the internet, it is legal for the ultra self-righteous amongst us to hold protests at funerals for soldiers killed in battle; specifically those soldiers who were openly gay. In my humble opinion, it may be legal, but it is far from "OK," as stated in the title of the article I just saw. (I think it was on MSN.com or UPI, but I'm not absolutely certain.)
Since when did a funeral become more about the former lifestyle of the deceased than it is about those left behind trying to find some comfort in their intense heartbreak by holding a ceremony to memorialize their loved one? For any group to so openly and savagely rejoice in the deaths of others' loved ones, particularly when those deaths have occurred during war time, in service to our country, is to invite retaliation. Haven't we seen enough of that in endless past examples from the Middle East, among other places and situations?
These protests need to be seen as a two-way street, and the fundamentalists who staged the initial protests at a gay soldier's funeral (I hesitate to refer to them as "Christian") should consider that there may eventually be those who will choose to rejoice and "protest" at the funerals for some of their loved ones. This latest Supreme Court ruling opens the door for that to happen LEGALLY.
Is my point getting through or am I muffing it here? JUST BECAUSE WE HAVE CERTAIN RIGHTS UNDER THE LAW DOES NOT MAKE IT OK TO ABUSE THE SPIRIT UNDER WHICH THOSE RIGHTS HAVE BEEN GRANTED! I do not know how to state this any more strongly. I hope someone is listening.
So, while it may be legal for me to protest at the funeral of someone I have strongly disagreed with or condemn, it is still an action that is provoking in its emotional overtones and aggressive in its nature. It is picking a fight with grieving relatives and friends and is extremely insensitive and tacky at best, and emotionally explosive if the situation races out of control and a mob mentality takes over, at its worst. THIS NEEDS TO BE AVOIDED, especially now that the law has stepped back and can/will no longer move to prevent such potentially eruptive situations from taking place due to such "protests" now being protected by Freedom of Speech.
Although people may disagree, fundamentally, with any public honors being granted to these soldiers, they can hardly deny that these men and women died bravely serving their nation without the presence of solid proof of cowardice or dishonor BEYOND the soldier's CONSTITUTIONALLY PROTECTED AND LEGALLY PERMITTED CHOICE of sexual preference.* The honors were, and are, legally and morally earned, something many of the "protestors" may have never experienced for themselves directly or collaterally. These honors should not be rescinded unless actual proof of some perfidy on the part of the honoree, directly relating to the honor in question, can be produced in a timely manner. THEN protest, with hard evidence, in court. The argument would be they did not serve and die bravely - despite their homosexual preferences - and therefore due to cowardice or dishonor should not receive, or have noted publically, honors for their actions. We already know they were gay.
The kindest way to handle this, I think, is to consider those whose gross insensitivity to the pain and loss of others, whose mindless cravings for attention silence arguments for kindness, patience, truth, civility, compassion, forgiveness, - traits of any person of good conscience (a "good Christian?") - as being misguided and/or ignorant. YES, the Bible condemns homosexuality and it IS considered one of the BIG sins, but IT IS HARDLY THE ONLY "BIG" SIN LISTED. Why aren't these people also protesting at the funerals of adulterers, abusers, rapists, murderers, thieves, frauds, gluttons, liars, molesters? How, in good conscience, can you be more tolerant of certain BIG sins than others? Why are these people so virulantly vicious regarding this particular sin while seemingly soft, publically, on the rest of the REALLY BIG SINS?
Perhaps it has to do with this particular sin being more public, as it has needed to be, in order for the people concerned to fight ignorance and prejudice, cruelties and inequities, and to claim their Constitutional rights as adult human beings and United States citizens. Perhaps it has to do with fear on the part of those protesting; Christians are not supposed to walk in fear. (Note: not everyone is Christian and feels or understands repentance or sees the need to sincerely repent.) Homosexuality is as forgiveable a sin in the eyes of God as any of the other, more secret and subtle, sins listed equally beside it. Maybe homosexuality just isn't SNEAKY enough anymore to squeak by the protestors like all of the other sins. If homosexuals were to become more quiet about their lifestyles once again perhaps the protestors would feel differently about the whole issue. The matter certainly deserves more thought and attention, more compassion, before things run out of control.
Also, to pinpoint accutely, to so thoroughly isolate and concentrate, your efforts in one single direction is to magnify an issue OUT OF PROPORTION and to MISUSE VALUABLE RESOURCES that could be having more of an effect elsewhere. THAT OTHER SINS ARE JUST AS, OR MORE, HEINOUS AND IMPORTANT TO FIGHT AGAINST than the issue of a decent and respectful funeral for a fallen soldier who also just happened to be gay, is unarguable. The funeral and the honors, the grief and the loss, are NOT the sin!
It should also be noted, for the record, that whereas homosexuality/lesbianism is NOT CONTAGIOUS, hatred, ignorance, and often violence, seem to be. A little more food for thought.
* Presumably, these people have not victimized, deliberately harmed, killed or deprived others of their freedoms and Constitutional rights and legal priveleges because of their choice of sexual preference - which takes homosexuality out of the realm of a sexual perversion, such as pedophilia or sadism. Again, my humble opinion.
Since when did a funeral become more about the former lifestyle of the deceased than it is about those left behind trying to find some comfort in their intense heartbreak by holding a ceremony to memorialize their loved one? For any group to so openly and savagely rejoice in the deaths of others' loved ones, particularly when those deaths have occurred during war time, in service to our country, is to invite retaliation. Haven't we seen enough of that in endless past examples from the Middle East, among other places and situations?
These protests need to be seen as a two-way street, and the fundamentalists who staged the initial protests at a gay soldier's funeral (I hesitate to refer to them as "Christian") should consider that there may eventually be those who will choose to rejoice and "protest" at the funerals for some of their loved ones. This latest Supreme Court ruling opens the door for that to happen LEGALLY.
Is my point getting through or am I muffing it here? JUST BECAUSE WE HAVE CERTAIN RIGHTS UNDER THE LAW DOES NOT MAKE IT OK TO ABUSE THE SPIRIT UNDER WHICH THOSE RIGHTS HAVE BEEN GRANTED! I do not know how to state this any more strongly. I hope someone is listening.
So, while it may be legal for me to protest at the funeral of someone I have strongly disagreed with or condemn, it is still an action that is provoking in its emotional overtones and aggressive in its nature. It is picking a fight with grieving relatives and friends and is extremely insensitive and tacky at best, and emotionally explosive if the situation races out of control and a mob mentality takes over, at its worst. THIS NEEDS TO BE AVOIDED, especially now that the law has stepped back and can/will no longer move to prevent such potentially eruptive situations from taking place due to such "protests" now being protected by Freedom of Speech.
Although people may disagree, fundamentally, with any public honors being granted to these soldiers, they can hardly deny that these men and women died bravely serving their nation without the presence of solid proof of cowardice or dishonor BEYOND the soldier's CONSTITUTIONALLY PROTECTED AND LEGALLY PERMITTED CHOICE of sexual preference.* The honors were, and are, legally and morally earned, something many of the "protestors" may have never experienced for themselves directly or collaterally. These honors should not be rescinded unless actual proof of some perfidy on the part of the honoree, directly relating to the honor in question, can be produced in a timely manner. THEN protest, with hard evidence, in court. The argument would be they did not serve and die bravely - despite their homosexual preferences - and therefore due to cowardice or dishonor should not receive, or have noted publically, honors for their actions. We already know they were gay.
The kindest way to handle this, I think, is to consider those whose gross insensitivity to the pain and loss of others, whose mindless cravings for attention silence arguments for kindness, patience, truth, civility, compassion, forgiveness, - traits of any person of good conscience (a "good Christian?") - as being misguided and/or ignorant. YES, the Bible condemns homosexuality and it IS considered one of the BIG sins, but IT IS HARDLY THE ONLY "BIG" SIN LISTED. Why aren't these people also protesting at the funerals of adulterers, abusers, rapists, murderers, thieves, frauds, gluttons, liars, molesters? How, in good conscience, can you be more tolerant of certain BIG sins than others? Why are these people so virulantly vicious regarding this particular sin while seemingly soft, publically, on the rest of the REALLY BIG SINS?
Perhaps it has to do with this particular sin being more public, as it has needed to be, in order for the people concerned to fight ignorance and prejudice, cruelties and inequities, and to claim their Constitutional rights as adult human beings and United States citizens. Perhaps it has to do with fear on the part of those protesting; Christians are not supposed to walk in fear. (Note: not everyone is Christian and feels or understands repentance or sees the need to sincerely repent.) Homosexuality is as forgiveable a sin in the eyes of God as any of the other, more secret and subtle, sins listed equally beside it. Maybe homosexuality just isn't SNEAKY enough anymore to squeak by the protestors like all of the other sins. If homosexuals were to become more quiet about their lifestyles once again perhaps the protestors would feel differently about the whole issue. The matter certainly deserves more thought and attention, more compassion, before things run out of control.
Also, to pinpoint accutely, to so thoroughly isolate and concentrate, your efforts in one single direction is to magnify an issue OUT OF PROPORTION and to MISUSE VALUABLE RESOURCES that could be having more of an effect elsewhere. THAT OTHER SINS ARE JUST AS, OR MORE, HEINOUS AND IMPORTANT TO FIGHT AGAINST than the issue of a decent and respectful funeral for a fallen soldier who also just happened to be gay, is unarguable. The funeral and the honors, the grief and the loss, are NOT the sin!
It should also be noted, for the record, that whereas homosexuality/lesbianism is NOT CONTAGIOUS, hatred, ignorance, and often violence, seem to be. A little more food for thought.
* Presumably, these people have not victimized, deliberately harmed, killed or deprived others of their freedoms and Constitutional rights and legal priveleges because of their choice of sexual preference - which takes homosexuality out of the realm of a sexual perversion, such as pedophilia or sadism. Again, my humble opinion.
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