Donner...1996-2010

I still remember picking him up from the airport.  I was living in Winston Salem, NC in an apartment and decided on getting two cats.  After a bit of research I learned that Burmese cats are one of the most social and personable breeds so I contacted a lady in CA who sent me two whom I lovingly named Donner and Blitzen (1996-2007).  Getting involved with cats was a risky venture.  I am a loyal dog person of the Golden Retriever variety.  Cats would be a bit easier to take care of but the question persisted, "Would they actually care...about anything?" and for the past 14 years I have been learning the answer to that question.
Donner loved my furniture.  My recliner is scratched to death...and now I will treasure it's scratched exterior for years to come.  Donner loved chicken soup, laying on Abby (my Golden), and purring endlessly.  He had a motor that wouldn't quit.  On a cold winter's night I often pleaded for his companionship which turned out to be a 50/50 proposition.  On a lucky night he would curl his warm body right next to mine and purr us both to sleep.  He would always wait patiently each morning for me to finish in the shower and immediately after I pulled back the curtain he'd jump in and lick the tub as if manna had descended from heaven each morning for him to enjoy.  Donner liked riding in the car where he could roam around and explore.  He would eventually find his way to my shoulder or lap and casually glance out the window for a while before slipping into the back seat for yet another nap.  His ultimate favorite thing however was to climb in the dryer after a load had just finished.  Most times I would leave a towel or two inside and he'd stay there for hours...even in the summer.  Since living at Nashotah he'd wait for me to return from the basement with a basket full of warm laundry and climb right it before I had the chance to fold anything.
Today...however...was the day that every lover of animals comes to dread.  He'd not been eating recently and the vet suspected some kind of tumor.  I hesitated a long time before making the appointment unwilling to let go of a prize so dear. Last night as I read on the couch he curled up on my shoulder and I stayed there the entire night knowing that this might be our last night together.  After the vet examined him this morning and showed me the X-rays I knew...but this time the knowing didn't make it any easier.  As he lay nestled securly in my arms I whispered over and over again just what a wonderful gift God had given me in this life He had created.  My last words to him were..."Go find Blitzen...go find Blitzen..."  and in my mind that is exactly where he is.
Some say that there's a rainbow bridge somewhere and that when we die and leave this life we'll cross over to find those animal friends we've spent our earthly years loving.  I pray it to be so.  All I know for sure is that God created Donner to provide for me a companion that I will never forget and always treasure.  It makes me love God all the more...So goodbye dear friend and know that when I reach those golden shores and see Jesus and all my human friends I'll come looking for you...you can count on it...