Saying Goodbye To An Old Friend…

Today I had to do something tough, say goodbye to an old friend.

I got Lucky (or brother, hermano, dude, old man, he had many nicknames) over ten years ago. We adopted him from our barber who was moving in with her boyfriend, and he was allergic. She warned us that he could be kind of an asshole. She was right.

Lucky was full of piss and vinegar, he bit people, knocked over full cups of liquid, yelled at visitors and beat up the other cats. He was a tough guy, a rebel, a renegade cat with the law on his tail.

He was initially brought into an apartment with two other cats, and outlived them. He moved with me to college with my roommate and great friend Jason. From there he had someone new to torment. I’d often hear Jason scream from across the apartment because of lucky knocking over his drinks right in front of him. It’s like he had nothing to lose and wanted to fuck with everyone he could, just for the hell of it.


Soon enough we brought a brand new baby into the apartment, Lena Leonard. Having a baby princess around really calmed Lucky down. He went from a rebel to a mentor. Regaining some youth, playing with her and even playing with toys. It was the best thing that ever happened to him. After two more apartment moves, they were best friends, but they always wrestled.

Lately Lucky had been showing signs of his age, getting slower, calmer, and more relaxed. It was like he finally decided it was time to settle down. Over the months he’d gotten substantially thinner and less active, until recently he just reached a point where his elderly years were catching up to him.

Over the last few days, he got pretty weak. He couldn’t jump anymore, and he could barely walk. It was his time.

Lucky went out in a very loving and gentle way. The vetenarian even said it was very compassionate and loving to help him before he could suffer anymore.

I’m gonna miss the old man, and I know right now he’s knocking over people’s cups in the great beyond.

Love & miss you brother,
Matt