{Special Report} – Goodbye Mista

Not many things in my life have been constant for the past 15 years. I’ve been a mom for 5 of that, lived in this town for 7 of that, loved the same man for 14 of that.
I got him in college, and moved him across the mountains, then across the county, then across the country again. He lived with me in 3 states, in 8 homes, and drove thousands of miles with me. A lot of cats have an evil side. Not this one. He was 99% sweet. He loved to suck on hair. He love-nipped our hands when he was happy. He was always offering up his big belly for rubbing. He made crazy noises at flying bugs. In his youth, he was an amazing jumper. He was a lover, a cuddler. He always had his purr on. He winked. Tuna was his favorite. Ice cream too. He’d eat just about anything. I trained him to sit and stay. He weighed 24 pounds at his heaviest, probably 5 of that was fur. He was super soft and fuzzy. He had beautiful green eyes. He let us dress him up. He loved Costco boxes. He swam in Idaho. He walked on a leash in New York. He picnicked in New Hampshire. He stared down a buffalo in Wyoming. We called him Mista, or Mista Guy as much as we called him Jeffrey. He lived a long, full life around people who loved him. We’ll miss him.