October 16, 2012 - Look at the Picture Again

 

An exercise from The Writer’s Retreat Kit

Snapshots

“Look at the picture again.”

Do you see the Cat?

His name was Rocky and, although he crossed The Rainbow Bridge many years ago, his love and joy still lives in my heart.

Snapshots of Our Life Together

• Rocky was a “baseball cat,” one of the sons of Trina, the resident kitty at the home stadium of the El Paso Diablos Baseball Club in the early 1980s.  Back then, the stadium was known as “The Dudley Dome.”  I was the team’s Office Manager for a while back then. 
• Acting more like a devoted canine companion than the feline variety, on more than two occasions Rocky positioned himself between me and a dog as if to protect me from harm.
• His fur caught many a tear in the days mounting up to, through and following my first divorce.  He always seemed to know when to come cuddle up with me.
• Living on my own again in the house with Rocky and his kitty pal Zeke, Rocky would go to the front door and growl any time someone would come calling.  Yep, just like a dog!
• So many leaves in the above photo means there is a decent-sized tree around.  The branches in that tree were positioned perfectly for hide-and-seek and playing “tag” with my kitty-boy.  We shared that game the day the photo was taken and on countless other occasions. 
• Rocky carried the feline leukemia trait from his mother and it became active when he was seven years old.  There were numerous vet visits and he was holding his own, although seriously ill. Working full-time, there came the day when Rocky was scheduled for an appointment following my work day.  In the early afternoon, I had a strong desire – a need – to check on him.  Luckily my boss was also an animal lover and understood my need to leave early from the job.  Entering my home,  I called to Rocky but he did not come to greet me as usual.  Going through the house, I came upon him in a bedroom. He had apparently jumped down off the bed to come meet me but collapsed on the floor.  Although his eyes were open and he was breathing, I could see that he was seeing the threshold of The Rainbow Bridge.  Cradling him in my arms there on the floor, I spoke softly to him.  I recalled some of our special moments together over the years such as in the photograph above and told him what a good and brave boy he was.  I told him how much I loved him and that, although I would miss him dearly, it was okay for him to go.  After several precious minutes together,  Rocky stepped up onto The Rainbow Bridge and crossed over, peacefully leaving this world for the next.
• During the first year following his passing, Rocky would visit me during The Dreamtime.  Feeling so very real, the “dream” would be he and I strolling the streets of San Francisco together.  Rocky was never on a leash and sans that attachment in our nighttime adventures.  We were just two friends out for a stroll.  When I visited San Francisco a few years later, my thoughts turned to Rocky and our walks together.

I know that one day I’ll see my Rocky again and that we will have time for countless walks and hide-and-seek in the trees once more.

Christmas 1986 in Houston, Texas