This blog post is dedicated to a very special member of my family who sadly went off to Kitty Heaven last week.
‘Slinky’ came into our lives just after my tenth birthday and was with us for seventeen years. He was the gentlest, most beautiful kitty you’d ever come across – all you had to do was look at him and he’d start purring (loudly!). And he was such a wuss! He literally defined the term ‘scaredy cat’. But at the end of the day, he was a lovely companion, especially for a cat (because, let’s face it, all cats have attitude – it’s what makes them so ‘funny’).
Another fun fact: not only did Slinky always sit on any black material he could find (and shed fur all over it!), but when I was going through my old photos the other day, I found these two from back when I was writing the first draft of my upcoming debut novel, Akarnae. I think he was trying to ‘help’ me write it (*rolls eyes*):
And then there were the times when he just had to be the centre of attention:
And don’t even get me started on the strange places we’d find him:
All-in-all, he was a beautiful and beloved member of the family. And he made it to the equivalent of one hundred human years, which I think deserves some kind of kitty medal!
To finish this somewhat random (and somewhat morbid) post, I just want to briefly segue back into the theme of creativity that I’ve been focusing on of late – and I promise that it’s relevant…
We received a letter in the mail from our veterinarian (which arrived a few days after the Kitty Heaven decision), and it was a condolences card, of all things. It was completely unexpected, to the point that we weren’t sure whether to start laughing or start crying. The card itself was lovely and heartfelt, but they added in a poem on a slip of paper. After reading it (and fighting back the tears as I heard the phantom meows) I found myself realising yet again that creativity is unlimited. It can come from the stroke of a paintbrush, or the solving of a mathematical equation. It can be seen in the night’s sky, and in the freshly-mown grass at our feet. It can be found in the pages of a fantasy novel… or in the words of a veterinarian’s condolences card. Creativity has no boundaries. So let’s continue to stretch our own imaginations and see where they can lead us!
Lynette Noni 