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Six Months

Today marks six months since my dad died. I’d been thinking about him a lot over the weekend, because that was the time I was supposed to visit him. We’d made the plans before he was diagnosed. Since he lived in Palm Desert, I always visited him either in April or October/November, when the weather was more temperate. When we made our plans, April was out because that was the month of my mom’s 90th birthday, but I ended up seeing him in April anyway.

That visit, made in early April, would be the last time I’d see him. While he clearly was sick and had lost a lot of weight, he was still my dad. His attitude was good and he was happy to see me. My uncle, aunt, and several of my cousins were there then as well, and while I was glad to see them, in retrospect I wish I’d had more time alone with my dad. But I’m not terribly bothered by it. I’d planned another trip in May, but he went downhill quickly.

The uncle who visited died in September. I saw him again a few weeks after our visit to Palm Desert (when I was visiting my mom) and had a good talk with him, something that had been really important to my dad.

I’m told the first year after someone dies is the hardest. I have to admit, in a way I don’t want the pain to go away because I feel like then I’ll be letting go of someone I loved very much, and I don’t want to let go. Maybe a few more tears and I’ll be ready for the next stage.

Anyway, here’s to my dad.

Image Credit: Flowers (header) © Caphira Lescante–stock.adobe.com

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Walter’s Content in the Sun

Walter and Mimi take turns sitting on the living room windowsill, and both look pretty content when they’re doing so. I’m rarely able to catch Mimi in such a peaceful pose. For that matter, it doesn’t usually happen with Walter. They both tend to shift when I move in on them. But today I was able to get close enough to capture Walter looking, well, pretty content.

Image Credits: Cesar Cat © Belinda O; Paws in Heart © Bigstock Photos; I Work Hard…© DzgnVibe–stock.adobe.com

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Treasured Books

What’s one thing you own that holds deep sentimental value?

Several books from my childhood sit on one particular bookcase, and they all have sentimental value. One of my most valued treasures is the The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, illustrations by Tasha Tudor. The book itself is falling apart in places, but not so much that I can’t page through the chapters and remember what first enchanted me about the story. It’s those wonderful illustrations that bring back the memories, those along with a poem or two uttered by the characters in the book. I memorized one of those poems and still can recite it today.

Another book that sits on the same bookcase is Riley Love-Lyrics. Published in 1905, my great-grandfather gave it as a wedding gift to my great-grandmother. He’d rewritten one of the poems on the front inside cover. The ink has faded, of course, but I still can read the love in what he wrote. I have no idea if the poems are any good and frankly, they probably aren’t classics, but the book means a lot to me.

And of course, I have my collection of the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, illustrated by Garth Williams, in hardcover. They’re only available in paperback today, which you’d think might make what I have worth something, but I doubt that it is. But again, they mean a lot to me. I read and re-read each of these books time and again. What do I think of the TV show? Never saw the original, and haven’t watched anything of the new episodes (assuming they’re still available). Some things, in my mind, are best left to the imagination.

Image Credits: Header © Wit_Photo–stock.adobe.com; all pictures of the books and illustrations are from my own collection.

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A little health update…

As I mentioned in last week’s Caturday post, I took the cats to the vet for their annual exams. They did pretty well once we got there (the ride over was no fun) and submitted to the exams with little fuss. Since I hadn’t put them on a diet, I was dismayed to learn that each had lost a pound over the past year. The vet was concerned as well and recommended a senior blood test for both of them. So I shelled out the big bucks for that. Then they each ended up needing a urine test. The results of all these tests? Mimi has a thyroid problem and both have early stage kidney disease. Oh, Walter also has a heart murmur, which the vet detected during his exam. It’s a small murmur, very low on the murmur scale, but could be indicative of bigger problems down the line.

So we’ll be adding a supplement to their meals for the kidney disease. The rest we just have to wait and see. My babies are getting older!

Sleeping off the trauma of the kitty-cat doctor…
Another sleeping beauty…

Image Credits: Cesar Cat © Belinda O; Paws in Heart © Bigstock Photos; Cat at Vet © HardWork–stock.adobe.com

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I Voted!

It felt good. I think most of the people who follow my blog (well, the Americans anyway) probably have voted or will vote, but if you’re wavering, I encourage you to stop by your local polling place and cast your ballot. Your vote matters.

Image Credit: Header © Rawpixel.com–stock.adobe.com