Nala
June 2, 1994 – January 1, 2008

On the morning of New Year’s Day we had to say goodbye to our furry, lovable, four-legged friend NALA.

“Puss” as I liked to call her, as in “Puss N’ Boots” from the Shrek films, was in bad health and experiencing the effects of severe kidney disease from old age.

She had a human-like personality and always made sure to cuddle up with you if you had a bad day or were feeling blue.

NALA was a great bonus that came with marriage. I have never been a huge animal person and swore in my early days to never give a woman a ‘shot at love’ that had inside animals. Love can change a lot of things or beliefs we had earlier in life, and we usually end up a better person or happier because of our willingness to change.

I saw a photo of NALA before I ever met her, and I swore she was either a bear or a bobcat. She was just so large.  I had only ever seen the outside cat we had growing up, that we usually fed (when we remembered) and never gave water to.  So you can imagine my horror when I moved in with this cat that got little exercise and ate more expensive food than I was use to eating.

In her earlier days she loved chasing around bottle caps and picking them up with her teeth.  She compiled a rather large collection of them behind the washer and dryer so legend has it.

Phoenix loved making a clicking sound with his mouth to try to get NALA to come close so he could pet her. She bravely obliged more often than not.

Four years with a ‘silly’ cat has shown me that animals can love, be loved, and be a true friend through thick and thin.

Our other cat BETTY naturally has been sad, down, and looking for her old friend. She has always been a scaredy cat but has really warmed up and been NALA-ish in the past week.

Thanks NALA for taking care of my girl for all of those years!

We all three + Betty miss you!