Remembering Jewel on Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day

Dear Jewel,

I cannot believe that exactly one year ago, I held you in my lap for the very last time as I helped you cross to the Rainbow Bridge.  It is the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my life.  I miss you so much everyday and wish you were still here with us.

You didn't have an easy life for your first 14 years, and it is no secret that I did not agree with how your former owner treated you.  It often broke my heart to watch you desire your former owner's love and attention and not receive it.

I only knew you for four short years, but you changed my life and taught me some important lessons.  You taught me that love really does conquer everything.  You did not have an easy life, Jewel, and when you claimed me as your human, you did not readily trust and love me for a very long time.  But I kept loving you, and eventually, you let me break down the walls you had built up and accepted my love.  I am truly amazed by your strength, perseverence, and bravery.

You taught me that being stubborn is not necessarily a "bad" thing.  In fact, I believe it is because of your stubbornness and your perseverance that you were able to surivive so long and live so well with your chronic renal failure.

I hope and pray that in the four years I knew you that your life was happier.  I hope that for the last two years of your precious life where you claimed me as your human that I was able to give you even a fraction of the love, care, and attention you deserved.

Do you know what the biggest lesson I want people to learn from your story is, Jewel?  I want others to not be afraid to adopt senior kitties into their homes.  When you claimed me, I knew your time was likely pretty limited here on earth with us, given that you had chronic renal failure.  I tried to distance myself from you emotionally so I wouldn't bond with you.  I didn't want to hurt so much when it was your time to leave us.  But try as I might, I couldn't help falling in love with you.

Yes, it hurt me to help you cross the Bridge when you told me it was time for you to go.  It hurt more than I ever could have imagined.  It still hurts so very much.  But I don't regret taking you into my home and heart one bit.  I only wish that I could have given you more time to be loved and cared for the way you deserved to be.

I want others to know that it is worth it to adopt senior kitties, special needs kitties, and terminally ill kitties.  All kitties deserve love, and in my opinion, the elderly, special needs, and terminally ill kitties need love the most.  I hope that your story will inspire others to step outside their comfort zones and adopt a kitty they might not have otherwise, Jewel.

You are my little angel, Jewel.  I know that you visit me sometimes.  I say "hello" to you when I see you.  I hope that you'll continue to visit me and maybe even stick around longer than a fraction of a second so I can see you more.  I always love seeing you; it makes my day.  I only wish I could hear and pet you again.

Thank you for trusting me and loving me, Jewel.  It is the greatest gift I could have ever asked for.  I will never forget the lessons you taught me.  I am so blessed to have had the opportunity to know, care for, and love you so deeply.

You are always in my heart, Jewel.  I will never forget you, and someday we will be together again.

Jewel

June, 1998-August 28, 2014

I love you, my angel.

Today is the first annual Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day, created by our dear friend, Deb Barnes.  You can learn more about this very special day and why she created it at her blog, Zee & Zoey's Cat Chronicles.  Deb has an amazing blog, and I am so blessed to be able to call her a good friend.  

I hope you'll take the time to visit other blog posts in today's blog hop.  Today is a very special day for so many of us to remember our beloved furry friends.