by Megan
(Columbia, MO)

Our Beloved Boots

The day we got our cat Boots (he had grey fur and white boots on his legs and arms), my twin sister didn't want him because we had just buried a cat. Within that night, she had his heart and he had hers. We were 7 years old when we took him home and he became our beloved baby Boots. Oddly enough, later that day a stray cat landed on our front porch. My parents decided to keep her too and we named her Sandy because of her fur color.

Boots and Sandy were inseperable and we were inseperable with them too. We played with them but mainly Boots because he was so laid back. He let us dress him up and even put him in a Cabbage Patch doll car seat. They moved with us from Texas to Indiana; Indiana to New Hampshire; and finally New Hampshire to Missouri. Boots was my twin sisters baby. He slept with her, on her, and let her hold him like a baby. Anytime Boots was sick, my twin sister took care of him as it came natural to her.

About a week ago, he became different in appearance. He lost weight and interest in activity. The last few days of living, he couldn't walk or go the the liter box. We figured out he had kidney failure and it was fast approaching his death. My mom read the book "Cat Heaven" to him the day before he died. He died October 19, 2009 and we all feel like a part of us died with him. He was an amazing pet and part of the family. We loved him so much that he lived for eighteen years and was literally with our family eighteen years to the day we brought him into our home up to his death. Although we still have Sandy and another loving cat, the house feels empty without Boots. He is forever in our hearts as I feel we are in his. We are so blessed to have such a loving cat that brought so much joy into our lives.