Extraordinary Sunshine Weaver

I hope this memoir inspires you to submit your pet poem or story to MasticadoresUSA. This memoir is about our three cats, all of whom passed away over a period of two years.

Here are the opening paragraphs. Please read the rest of the memoir by following the link, which also includes the submission call again.

My husband, Dierik, and I have rescued a number of cats. Our most recent darlings, three males most likely ditched in the park across the street by college students graduating, families moving and not able to take their cat, families not able to afford to feed a new litter, and so on. The cats appeared one by one and stayed. We cared for them for several years, and over a recent two-year period, each one passed away because of cancers. The cats were in their late teens.

Saga, the oldest, passed away first in May 2023, then JoJo in November that year, and Jasper, the youngest, in November of 2024. 

We always cared for our ailing cats at home. Our mobile vet would stop by almost daily to check on them and rehydrate them. The oldest, Saga, an orange tabby, had gotten down to 3 pounds. Because I started to feed him wet food constantly, his weight increased by several pounds. Our vet suspected Saga had more than one form of cancer. Hospitalizing him was not going to save him, and he was too fragile to withstand a scary visit to the veterinary hospital. We knew they would want to euthanize him. Because he didn’t seem to be in pain (but how do we ever really know), we provided hospice care at home. He was fighting it, lingering, and slowly dying. He would mew softly when I sat with him, breaking my heart. Dierik was with him when he passed…..

Rainbow Bridge Train Stop by Barbara Leonhard