My precious Hoshi has joined her sister Lilly in Kitty Heaven. She left a Hoshi sized hole in my heart. Yet I am happy for her that she is no longer suffering. And I thank God for the time I had with her. She was the sweetest Kitty with the loudest purr. Hoshi defined lap kitty. From the day she came into my life, my lap belonged to her.
Hoshi came into my life at the age of 2 after having two litters of kittens. She was a retired queen and knew she was a queen. She came into a home with a big brother, Hayden. We were not sure of Hayden’s age, but suspected he was around 10 at the time.
Hayden loved his little sister. They cuddled when I wasn’t home and both greated me at the door when I walked in. In the evenings, they tag teamed my lap as we watched TV.
We lost Hayden a few years later to an aneurism. Hoshi was devistated. She wandered the house looking for him. I was devistated also. We shared the loss together. I had to go back to work, but I could see she was missing Hayden while I was away. So in comes Lilly. Lilly was also a retired queen and the two hit it off with hardly any need for introduction.
The two girls became inserapable. They slept together, ate together, and tag teamed my lap at night watching TV. They explored the house from top to bottom and found hidey holes and their favorite sun bathing spots. Lilly was a bit more rambuncous than Hoshi, but Hoshi was the instigator of exploration.
For Hoshi, there was no such thing as a closed door. I could not close the bathroom door to take a shower. No privacy. She had to know what Mommy was up to in that room. At night, she would open all the cabinet doors. She even opened the dresser drawers. Then Lilly would be the one to go explore. I could hear their conversation …
“Bet you won’t go in there if I get it open.”
“You can’t open that!”
“Watch me.”
“Ok, if you open it, I’ll check it out.”
“Ta Da! Your turn!”
Of the two, Lilly was more independent. She would venture out while Hoshi stayed close to Mommy. Although there were a few episodes where I found Hoshi in the strangest spots. In her younger years, she loved getting on top of the Kitchen Cabinets. Even when we moved into the new home 7 years ago, the fisrt thing she did was explore the top of the cabinets. Since she didn’t like closed doors, I always had to watch because she did peak her nose out the door when I was coming in. In the old house, we had a room between the garage and kitchen. One day I found her out there behind boxes. She had snuck out when I was coming in. She had the most sheepish look on her face when I rescued her from behind the box where she could not get out. It was so sweet.
Hoshi loved the camera and the camera loved her. She would see the camera and start posing. Lilly was more than happy to give Hoshi that spot light. Lilly saw the camera and would walk away as quickly a possible. Many of the pictures started with both Hoshi and Lilly. But Lilly saw the camera and was — “I’m outta here!” Then Hoshi was like, “here Mom — My best side!”
Hoshi was my office companion. She made sure my chair was warm and my legs crossed perfectly for her to nap or observe and make sure I did it right. After I got a new office chair, the old chair became her favorite nap spot during the day. In the past year, we’d get up and have our morning routine. Then Hoshi would follow me on my commute to the office and get in her chair to supervise me. In the afternoon, she would grab a bite of lunch with me, then sun by the back door before we’d have our evening meal and watch TV.
As Hoshi got older, she was unable to leap up to her favorite spots, bed, desk, couch. I began getting her stairs to help her. She eventually had 7 stairs throughout the house and she was as active as normal, simply walking up her stairs. But she did sleep more, as we all do as old age sets in and bones begin to creak.
When Lilly passed from Kidney Disease, Hoshi was my rock. She stayed by my side with her lovely purr letting me know we shared the loss together. She cuddled with me as I cried and I know she was crying kitty tears also. Yet this time, she seemed to be more at peace sooner than when Hayden passed. God gave me a little over a year with Hoshi after Lilly passed before calling Hoshi to His side. My brave, sweet girl hung in as long as she could knowing how much I would miss her. She was comfortable up until about 2 months ago when I noticed subtle behavior changes. We were able to keep her fairly comfortable but with Kidney Disease, the question isn’t if, but when. I thank God that the “when” was swift and she was able to tell me “now is the time Mom” within a day.
My sweet girl is now in Heaven and rejoined with her big brother and little sister and meeting the sisters who passed before she was born. They are cuddling in the sunlight, playing with their toys, and enjoying a life without pain. No more stairs for my sweet girl. She can leap to the top of the cabinets again!
My sincere condolences for the loss of your sweet Hoshi. I know how devastating and lonesome this can leave us when we lose a best friend like this. I’ll keep you close in my thoughts and prayers. I hope to see you soon. We have moved a bit closer to you (Norman, OK). – Love always, LuAnn
Thank you, LuAnn. I hope to see you soon. Take care. Joni
My heart breaks for you. I’m so very sorry for your loss. All of them. 💔
Thank you.