(and a little sorrow).

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving at our house. It had been nearly two years since everyone was home together. So, this year was extra special because all four boys were able to visit for a few days. Coming from Madison, Brooklyn(NY), Denver and Robbinsdale, they all arrived in time to join us for dinner.

After a wonderful dinner, we spent some time playing games and catching up on life. Throughout the weekend, the boys were able to visit friends, do some shopping and some cookie baking. Tim even updated our household WiFi. There were also lots of games of chess, Othello, and Xbox.

As of yesterday, they have all returned to their own residences, so our house is very quiet again.

Actually, its quieter than normal.

Thanksgiving evening, I called my mother to wish her a Happy Thanksgiving. While on the phone, my cat Onyx had a seizure, so, I quickly hung up to try to calm my cat.

Onyx had been having small seizures occasionally for over a year. Usually these episodes would last about a minute or so, with her being disoriented and unable to walk for a few minutes afterwards. But then she would return to her normal affectionate self.

This time, however, she did not recover. Over the next day, she was unable to move her hind legs and would not eat or drink anything . Then, the next evening she had another episode, this time losing the ability to move her front legs. In the morning she was no better and looked frightened and disoriented. Unfortunately, after thirteen years, she was unable to bounce back this time.

For many of us, myself included, our pets are as close as family, if not even closer. Pets are there for you twenty-four hours a day. They don’t care about laundry, housecleaning or making meals. They don’t care about things going on in the world. They just care about their “person”.

This was very true of Onyx. Earlier this year, I was treated for a synovial cyst that caused me severe back pain for over two months. During that time and since then, Onyx was my constant companion, always following me around the house and wanting to snuggle with me. She will definitely be missed.

In her memory, here are a few photos.