Thank You ...

Carlos and I want to thank everyone for your kind words on the passing of MaxGoldberg. While we have made this decision many times over the years, this one was tough because Max declined so quickly, and because I made the decision. Normally, Carlos and I discuss what to do, and when to do it, but this time I noticed that Max wasn’t sleeping with us, and was isolating, and just was not himself. Normally a very affectionate cat, the last couple of days he just sat by himself, so I made the call … and then instantly regretted it, even though I knew it was the best thing for him.

Carlos and I held Max all morning until it was time to go, and then we held onto him until he was gone, and now he’s resting in the backyard. I took the rest of the week off from work—luckily, I have a boss who has pets and fully understands the loss—and we are slowly settling in to being a two cat and a dog household.

Carlos, who worked for years in animal hospitals is generally calmer, more rational than me,  but over the weekend he said he was going to clean up part of the yard: I asked:

“What part?”

“Where we were the other day.”

“When we buried Max?”

“Uh huh.”

And then there’s Tuxedo, who was ours when we got Max, and who was Max’s best friend. Max would never eat breakfast with the other cats, preferring to stay on the bed until the other cats were done, and then he’d come out for his food. And that first morning after. Tuxedo came out to eat and then sat in the living room staring down the hallway waiting for Max to come out; that killed me.

Consuelo, on the other hand, only noticed that there was one less bowl at mealtime, but has also taken to sleeping in the guest room in the spot under the window that used to be Max’s.

We’re all getting used to being Max-less. I expect him to be on the bed when I go back to sleep; I wait for him to jump in my lap when we watch TV; I wish I could give him just one more kiss on his head.

But I will remember all the years and smile. Again, thanks for all your thoughts.