Friday, January 28, 2011

What they say is not necessarily what they feel

My boys have made some pretty bold statements over the years. Those statements used to scare me. Until I heard of the Little Boy in the Monster Suit. Now, if I can keep myself calm enough to think (regulated- sorry Alison), I can think of what lies beneath the statement. That scared little guy that is trying to convince himself and the rest of the world that his words are true.

Yesterday our old cat, Lucky, died. She was 14.

Our oldest daughter, Eagle, and I were out walking one day, when Eagle, who is now 25 and a married woman, was in 5th grade. We found this tiny kitten, probably only a month old cowering under an evergreen to avoid a lawn sprinkler. Her eyes were stuck shut. She obviously belonged to no one. She spent her first few week curled under my chin as she healed and became strong.  She had a good life and was a quiet happy cat. Since we moved to our new home in May she had decided to stay in the basement and hang out. Partly due to her round girlish figure, partly, I suppose because she felt safer down there.  She still always purred at the sound of my voice. In our old home I'd go in the bathroom and hear purring. She was sleeping in the cupboard on the towels and was just happy I'd come into the room. Rest in Peace Lucky.

The look of great sadness on Teddy's eyes was quiet genuine as I told him of her passing. Taz, on the hand said "Well she was old." My husband put her in a bag to prepare for burial. Taz volunteered to carry her out. I couldn't even look. Taz was very callous and said "Well she was old and she is just an animal." At first I was alarmed. This morning as I chose the spot to bury her and said we need to wait today for the sun to warm the ground enough to dig, Taz volunteered to go out and move the bag to where it needed to be.I looked out. He was obviously struggling emotionally with this job and my heart hurt as I realized I needed to be more careful with him.  We will bury her this afternoon and have a little service. It is hard to lose a pet, even when they are old.

Instead of listening to the first thing out of our kids mouths, we need to watch there actions. Are their words overly callous, overly bold? That is a good indication something else is up.  Be careful with their healing hearts.

Have a healing day!

3 comments:

Kari said...

I'm so sorry about the loss of your cat.

Brenda said...

Thank you Kari. She was very old but it was harder than I thought it would be.

Barb G said...

Pets are like family for some of us. I'm sorry you had to say goodbye to your kitty. And, I'm thankful that you got to see the heart behind the bluster in Taz. Praying for your family.