My Most Precious of Cats, Gracie is Gone...

Saturday March the 3rd working in the garden, raking leaves, my Gracie was right there with me, just like a million times before. She was with me every time I potted a plant, worked on any of my projects in the garage, she just had to be right there in the middle of it all.When I finished this day, Gracie and I walked back to the garage to put things away, she jumped up on the table I had set up to do my (our) painting, I had laid a small blanket there so she could just hang with mommy. She was sitting on the blanket when I pushed the button for the garage door to close, I opened the kitchen door, paused and looked  back at Gracie, still sitting on the table, and went on in the house. About thirty minutes later I was going to check to make sure Gracie had enough food in her bowl..but instead I saw her lying dead, trapped by the garage door, closing on her little body, crushing her life away from us. Wayne was busy lighting the grill for our evening meal, when he dropped everything when he heard my wailing , I was standing in the middle of the kitchen screaming, I could only point to the garage, I was screaming so hard I couldn't catch my breath, I had to bend over just to stand.  And with all that Gracie was gone from us forever, only to live in our memories and in such a special place in our hearts. All day Sunday we grieved, and I mean we didn't cry, we sobbed, Wayne had to actually go lay down we were just overcome, Wayne said "Rena I feel absolutely hollow inside". The rest of the day we would go to the garage to see Gracie, we had laid her on a cat quilt on the table, she looked just like she was sleeping, I would put my hands on her, just willing her to wake, but this was not to be. Later Sunday night Wayne and I decided on her burial spot, and he proceeded to dig her grave, but we just could not put her in to be covered with dirt, just too much for us to handle. Wayne covered her with the blanket and I put a candle on the table. We just couldn't wrap our heads around the fact that we will never see our Gracie again. Gracie was a talker, an extra small kitty, with fur that was grey and peach and felt like angora. Gracie was there for us anytime we worked in the yard, always greeting us as she ran down the driveway as our car pulled in, or anytime she would hear us open the front door at night to let Sophie our dog out, she would be talking and running down the front sidewalk to greet Sophie, and would reach up and grab her face with both paws licking her face. If Gracie wasn't on the ground, she was on the roof and would  be talking and walking the edge to follow us around the yard, I would walk to the crepe myrtle tree that she had used as her ladder to the roof , and down she would come to continue the walk beside us. I am telling you this yard has lost a mighty life force, we have lost our Gracie, no more petting her as she would drop to the ground and roll on her side tucking her head upside down for us to give her some love, Gracie absolutely demanded this! And we were more than happy to follow her orders! Gracie never stopped talking, even as we were petting her, just seemed to have so much to say, when we would go into the garage at night, and Gracie lay there sleeping, she would always raise her head and meow at least once, just getting in that last word of the day. Gracie came into our lives choosing us ten years ago, but she has left with us choosing her above all. Thank you Gracie, you were a comfort in our lives, that we didn't know we needed...

Wayne and I buried Gracie this morning, Monday, March 5, 2012