And then, there was one . . . . ( a Eulogy )

Jenni Mayıs 14, 2022

A sad, sad Hello to you dear friends & readers,

A few days ago I had to say Goodbye to my precious little Jinxy Girl after she was killed on our road.

My heart is heavy with grief as I type this.

It seems difficult to believe that I snapped this photo just one day prior to her death

I had been wandering around the garden looking for something inspiring to photograph & saw her watching me from under my old wooden wheelbarrow

What struck me was how well she looked after many months of caring for her & trying to get her to put weight on.

As I never knew the date she was born ... a litter of 4 wild kittens just appeared in my front garden last autumn ... I can only guess she would have been about a month shy of her first birthday when she died.

I left food every day in the front garden but their Mum kept shifting them as she didn't like me trying to interact with them. And then the frosts came & I found them one morning, all sleeping in my old dogs kennel, that I had still kept.

(click on the pic to enlarge to see how really tiny she was)

It became apparent how much smaller you were than the others ... you were such a wee dot.
A puff of wind could've blown you over
(in fact one day, a puff of wind actually blew you sideways as I watched you trying to run across the lawn)

You seemed constantly chilled & would let me bring you inside by the fire or the heater ... but you would only last about 10 minutes & you would be gone again, searching for the others . . .

. . . who frequently went off & left you all alone for long periods of time

We fed all 4 of you day & night ... but your Mum didn't like it & still took you away lots ... you were all quite wild really.
I named you Little Sickie with your sad face & your weepy eyes

Your sister "Whitey" was killed by a truck at the depot yard, & I found a good home for "Squawker" to live.
That left just you & your brother, Blackie. I invested in a cat cage & finally managed to get you into the Vets.

You had bad cat flu & bronchitus & she gave me 2 weeks of special antibiotics to give you.
After 24 hours you disappeared again, so I made the decision to lock you & Blackie inside for the time being.

Then, it became pandemonium for awhile . . .

I kept you shut inside through a cold wet winter for about 8 weeks in total.
You loved it & thrived . . . Blackie - he barely tolerated it.
As your health improved we renamed you little "Jinxy"

We tipped our little house "on its ear" making games & tunnels for you both to play in

You were always right there ~~being~~ a ~~pain~~ assisting me whatever I was doing, you loved my crafty pastimes

You were mischievious, rascally & often just plain naughty ... but like with any naughty child, I always forgave you when I saw you sleeping - your sweet little face & your curled up toes never failed to melt my heart

From day one, I always noticed how you loved to sleep in contact with one of your siblings, always tucked up right next to someone

Yes - we had you speyed ... this took two attempts at the Vets, you almost didn't survive the first anaesthetic

You were such a treasure little Jinxy, my dear sweet girl.
I had never experienced kittens before, I had always inherited other peoples "cast off cats" that needed rehoming.

You tipped my world on its head but you bought me endless joy & pleasure
I felt a tight knot of such deep love for you right in the centre of my chest where I imagine my heart to be.
We miss you so very much already.

And as for dear Blackie . . . he is just lost & lonely.
He wonders where his nutty, dippy, loopy sister has gone to. We are giving him extra special love, care & attention.

Sometimes I was sure there were multiple personalities inside that tiny wee head of yours dear Jinxy ...
& I loved every single one