Dreamer’s World - The Agony and the Ecstacy



I want to apologize for not writing over the last several days. This has been a tough time. One of our cats (The Stooges) became ill and we were busy caring for him. Sadly, the vet finally told us that he had inoperable kidney cancer. He had dropped over half his body weight and was not able to eat. We tried everything until the truth was undeniable.
Last night we took Maxwell to the vet for the last time. The staff was very kind, we stayed with Maxwell until the end. Hal and I decided that the last thing that Maxwell would see before he went on his way was us telling him that he was loved and cherished. Obviously, this was a very tough time and there are tears falling as I remember and am typing.


We will truly miss Maxwell. He was one of a kind. Spartacus, his brother from the same litter is in good health and we hope that he will be with us for a long time. Stevie Nicks is much younger and should be around as well.
At any rate, after we said our goodbyes to Maxwell, we walked outside the vet’s office. Hal indicated that he wanted to go by the nearby animal shelter to see what cats were available for adoption. I agreed to take him, I knew that it was just a matter of time until we would be ready to adopt another cat. We find that 3 cats balance each other out and prevents grudges being held between them.
We got to the shelter about an hour before closing time. Hal and I went to the room where all of the cats were in their cages to be seen. Hal initially went to an older male named Smokey, but the tech informed us that Smokey was on a special diet due to health reasons. That was something Hal and I were not willing to take on, we had just had to say goodbye to one pet and we were not willing to take on a special-needs cat so quickly. Since Hal had been the one who picked Maxwell all those years ago, I let him do most of the visiting and bonding with each of the cats.
As I wandered the large room, I noticed a black male cate, age 2. He was a stray that had been brought in. Then I looked at the name tag on the cage and it said “Hal”. I stopped and looked twice to be sure I was not hallucinating, but the name was Hal. I let Hal wander until he found me then he noticed Hal (cat) and Hal and Hal seemed to bond almost immediately. It was only after this that Hal (person) asked what his name was. At first he didn’t believe me, but I showed him the tag on the cage.
Today myself and Hal each had to go out for work at different times during the day. Hal (cat) has stayed in one of the bedrooms with the door shut as he adjusts to his new surroundings and it keeps Spartacus and Stevie Nicks from bothering him too much at first. Tomorrow we will formally introduce Hal to Spartacus and Stevie Nicks.
The key to all of this is that we went from depression and sadness to elation in just over an hour last night. It is amazing how much things can change if we refuse to be in a mood just because of something that happened. Maxwell can never be replaced, but life goes on for us and we have made our decision to share our love with another cat, another Stooge. More to follow.

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