I wasn't planning on getting another pet. At our house we already have the cats, Olivia & Kevin Catsner, the really goofy doggy Miller, and our 15 year old turtle, Shelly.
Last year, the kitty cat love of my life, Sophonia, died from a stroke. Her passing nearly took me with her. I loved Sophonia like I've never loved no other cat. She came into my life when I needed her most. She was born when I was in a relationship that was horrible, although I didn't know it at the time. A year ago this month she died from that stroke.
Sophonia wasn't like a "normal" cat. Most cats will only sit with you when they want to sit with you. Sophonia would sit with you whenever. You could pick her up, place her on your lap, shoulder or wherever and she was fine with that. She'd sit with you for hours on end. You know how most cats seem to be in a hurry to get in front of you and then poke along or just completely stop? Not my Sophonia. And the funniest thing she learned in her short lifetime was something she learned from her Doxie brother, Frankie. She would gallop down the hallway (we lived in a mobile home) at high speeds along side Frankie anytime they would hear our car pull into the driveway so they could greet us when we came in the door.
The night she died, Frankie never left her side. And for weeks after her grieved until I thought he was going to starve to death. We tried different brands of dog food just trying to get our little guy to eat but the vet said he was depressed. He was missing his best friend. I knew the feeling. I was missing her, too. Even though we had several other cats, none of them could take her place. She just had this personality that was like none other.
After I left that relationship and moved back to my hometown, Olivia was adopted from the Humane Society. She was never adopted as a replacement, there could never be a replacement. We just wanted to give an older cat a second chance.
Fast forward to this month. The anniversary of Sophonia's death month. Courtney and Justin told me several times about a kitten they'd seen darting out in traffic up the street. I knew it needed to be rescued but I didn't think we needed anymore pets. Then this past Friday, Justin mentioned that he thought that the kitten was marked similarly to Sophonia. Well, that just did it for me, we had to go rescue the kitten right then and there. We have a humane trap so we put a can of tuna and a bowl of water in it, set it in where the kitten had been seen and waited.
For several days, we checked the trap but there was no luck. There was even one day that it looked like the kitten had went in the trap and eaten the food but she was so tiny that she hadn't set the trap doors off. Well, patience and persistence paid off, because as of Monday, the little girl is mine.
Her name is Anastasia and it suits the tiny princess to a T. She doesn't resemble Sophonia exactly but there's a lot of similarities that are hard to ignore. For one, Anastasia is very happy to be held pretty much any time. And another, she's a calico like Sophonia. Also, it's more than just a coincidence that she showed up near the anniversary of Sophonia's death.
I've snuggled Anastasia a lot since she came here. And I've shed a few tears thinking of Sophonia. Some may think it's silly to think of a cat in such a way. I won't apologize for loving my pets like I do, they're more than just animals to me.
