Goodbye Pearl
It’s with a heavy heart that I write this: our beloved Pearl has passed away, and because she played such a large part in this blog, I thought it best to alert all of you that you will no longer be seeing photos of her in my future posts.
Pearl lived a good life, she would have been 10 this coming September, which may not seem very old for an indoor cat like her, but she suffered from a heart condition since she was a kitten. Although she was on four different kinds of medication at her passing, she was incredibly healthy considering what she lived with her entire life, and our vet admitted that Pearl ‘beat the odds’. She leaves behind her sister Smokey, who is doing alright, although acting a little more subdued than usual. Even though she was present while Pearl was put to sleep, Smokey seems to be wandering about the house looking for something, no doubt her lifelong companion.
We have some wonderful memories to remember Pearl by. She chose my husband as her favourite shortly after we got her and her sister as kittens, and she showed her affection in some strange ways; one of her favourite things to do was licking the deodorant from my husband’s armpits (which in hindsight, probably didn’t help her health all that much, but it wasn’t an everyday thing). The day we picked them up from the farm they were born on, Pearl had terrible gas, and for the five hour drive we had ahead of us, my husband and I were both shocked that such terrible smells could come from such a cute little ball of fluff.
I wish we had more time with Pearl, but I’m also grateful we still have Smokey in our lives. She will become the sole ‘face’ of ivereadthis for the foreseeable future, which will hopefully keep her spirits up as she mourns the loss of her sister.
Oh, my. I am so sorry to hear about Pearl, that she had been coping with illness for awhile and that it became too much for her. As soon as I saw the title of your post, I started to tear up and was just hoping that she was announcing her retirement from public book-duty. Poor Pearl, poor you, poor husband, poor Smokey. Such a hard, hard time. Perhaps adopting a greater responsibility for book-related duties will help distract Smokey from the loss (although I don’t believe anything can hasten/lessen it when one is very attached). The pictures are beautiful.
Thank you for your kind words. Yes, Pearl was very dear to us, but Smokey seems to be doing surprisingly well on her own now! Perhaps the extra book duties are lifting her spirits, as you suggested :)