chloe

This classic cheesecake photo of a lounging lady for her true love was taken during the Summer of SNO+ in 2014.
The physicist was up in Canada and his two old lady cats had been entrusted to my care.
From May 20th until June 13th, keeping the girls alive had been my responsibility.
And I was successful!
Then again, the tumor in the Chloe was still a manageable mass for her and she'd had more than a year to become accustomed to the extra drag.
You see, she had gained a reprieve from any external pain sources and her relatively good health had allowed the bfe to recover from his deep sadness at her diagnosis. More than a year had passed and she showed no signs of illness, other than a gradually widening backside. She was Super-Cat! So, he dared to venture from her side for almost a month, in the name of research.
As I said, I was successful in keeping the girls alive!
I think it was all thanks to much heavy petting and many, many treats.
(smile)
By the end of 2014, Chloe was still a force to be reckoned with! She had rushed from the kitchen counter to the dining room justthatfast to rescue Contessa! A year later, she would join forces with the 'Tess to come to my emotional rescue. Very nice!
Then Contessa died.
That was almost exactly six months ago.
Chloe had put up with my attentions for the week that the bfe was in Colorado. She had made it abundantly clear, by the end of that period, that my hands were not sufficient. She was his and she wanted him to be right there!
That was at the beginning of this year. She was ill at the time, but she had shown signs of improving.
Then, last Thursday, the bfe had me over "for dinner, conversation, and maybe some netflix". I had looked forward to seeing his new gallery of paintings. Very nice!
I knew something was not right as soon as I sat on the couch.
Chloe had come straight to me for petting.
And she was skin and bones.
She had not been eating. She seemed to have a problem with fluid in her thoracic cavity, so she had to choose between eating and breathing.
Poor girl!
Yet, she had been managing to get up and down the stairs, to be in his company when he was home. She had to have help to get up on the couch, but she certainly did try on her own.
She stayed on my lap, making her peace with me, until I finally had to move her.
Dinner was ready.
After dinner, she was back to her man, thank you very much.
He assured me she was going to the doctor again on Monday morning, to have the liquid drawn off. I assured him that I would make sure they got there on time. I told him about the kitty doctors in midtown, too, in case she needed help sooner than Monday.
And as I drove home, I cried. I had seen that Chloe was alive because of her love for him, a love that would not let her leave his side for an unknown future.
Pure love.
On Sunday afternoon, I had a text message from the bfe. They had taken her to the kitty hospital and she had been given "meds to increase her appetite". She was improving! What a relief!
Before the afternoon was done, though, I got a call from him.
Not a text.
A phone call.
Oh, no.
Just like six months ago.
Chloe was dead.
She had died in his arms.
What a blessing - for both of them - that he had been there for her.
Such a love story they have had.

Tuesday, I took them to Fox & Weeks for their 3:30 PM appointment.
I took him for a long drive on parkways full of blue sky and green trees, eventually ending up in Bluffton for cheeseburgers and salad and a brief respite from grief.
I talked to him about loss adjustment.
I hope he will find ways to bring some peace back to his world.
I hope the pictures I gave him will be helpful.
I so want to be helpful, instead of feeling helpless.

This morning, I took him back to Fox & Weeks to receive her ashes in her Rainbow Bridge box, then ferried them safely home to his place.
Mission accomplished.