After years of standing firm in our answer of “no” to the question posed by our boys, “Can we have a kitten?”, Pat and I gave in to the pressure and agreed they could. Not only did we allow them the privilege of one kitten, but we were informed Ash should have a friend, so Sweets moved in too. I will be perfectly honest, we really are not, nor have we ever been, huge cat lovers, but the boys were happy and the kittens were cute.
As the years progressed, life brought changes as the kids left for college, relocated for jobs and then moved on to marriage. The cats, however, remained steadfast in our home. We encouraged both boys to take their kitties with them, but one reason, or shall I say, excuse, followed another and the cats remained within the comforts of their familiar abode. Ash and Sweets, it would appear, would be here forever. That’s what we always assumed... until the day Sweets decided to take a taste of the Hydrangea plant we brought home following my mother-in-law’s funeral.
I noticed she wasn’t acting like herself; she had spent the entire day in a paralyzed state in a chair, unwilling to eat, which was completely unheard of for her. So, I contacted our local Veterinary office and took her in to be checked. I also contacted our Vet-Nephew and his advice was, “Treat her aggressively or put her to sleep.” Once at the Vets, many options were presented which would have taken a mortgage payment to complete, so I opted to bring her home and give her fluids with a syringe. Within three days, she had moved on to life number eight and we had our Sweets back.
For a few months, that is, until one day when she began acting a little strange and crawled under the crib in the spare bedroom. When Pat came home from work, he asked if I had seen Sweets. I replied, “She was under the crib the last time I saw her.” I then added, “I hope she didn’t crawl under there and die.” Now, at the time, I had a Daycare in my home and my little 4-year-old friend, Cadence, stood outside the spare bedroom while Pat checked under the crib. I couldn’t believe it when he said, “She’s dead.” Oh my goodness, that was unexpected. Pat quickly gathered supplies for her burial, he found an old piece of carpet and wrapped it around her lifeless body. Then he slipped her into a couple of garbage bags and we headed out to the woods where he had dug a hole for her. Cadence helped us perform a little service by offering a sweet prayer and we said our goodbyes. It was very precious.
A couple of weeks later our daughter and grandson came for a weekend visit. It was in the midst of playing with one another that Cadence turned to Sarah and asked if she had heard the news, the sad news, that Sweets had died. “Yes” Sarah replied, “It is sad, isn’t it? But now she is in kitty heaven.” Cadence seemed a bit confused by this statement and you could read it on her face. She took a deep breath and let out a sigh. She tilted her head, and then she furrowed her brows a bit. Her hand came to her chin, she puckered her lips and now deep in thought, she frowned while concern seemed to overtake her. Finally, after watching her struggle with the thoughts that seemed to overwhelm her, she spoke. “Ummm…. or actually, maybe, she’s wrapped up in a garbage bag out under the dirt.” Oh my goodness! Sarah and I could not contain our laughter. What Cadence's eyes saw and her ears heard from Sarah’s lips, were worlds apart. She witnessed what happened to the cat. She was there when Sweets was placed in the ground and convincing her otherwise would be tough.
In John 20, we are made aware of Thomas, a disciple that was with Jesus when He walked to the cross. He witnessed what happened to Him. He watched as they placed Him on the cross, he knew where they had taken Christ’s lifeless body, so hearing the other disciples tell him, “We have seen the Lord” caused him to question their sanity, I am sure.
“Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ So he said to them, ‘Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.’ And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, ‘Peace to you!’ Then He said to Thomas, ‘Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.’ And Thomas answered and said to Him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed’” (John 20:24-29).
What a precious moment that is for me to read. Jesus, showing Thomas what Thomas needed in order to believe. Don’t you just love how important we are to Him? God wants us to believe, even when we can’t see, even when it may feel impossible to believe, He says, “Do not be unbelieving but believing….Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Reach out to Him. Touch Him and be blessed by believing.
As the years progressed, life brought changes as the kids left for college, relocated for jobs and then moved on to marriage. The cats, however, remained steadfast in our home. We encouraged both boys to take their kitties with them, but one reason, or shall I say, excuse, followed another and the cats remained within the comforts of their familiar abode. Ash and Sweets, it would appear, would be here forever. That’s what we always assumed... until the day Sweets decided to take a taste of the Hydrangea plant we brought home following my mother-in-law’s funeral.
I noticed she wasn’t acting like herself; she had spent the entire day in a paralyzed state in a chair, unwilling to eat, which was completely unheard of for her. So, I contacted our local Veterinary office and took her in to be checked. I also contacted our Vet-Nephew and his advice was, “Treat her aggressively or put her to sleep.” Once at the Vets, many options were presented which would have taken a mortgage payment to complete, so I opted to bring her home and give her fluids with a syringe. Within three days, she had moved on to life number eight and we had our Sweets back.
For a few months, that is, until one day when she began acting a little strange and crawled under the crib in the spare bedroom. When Pat came home from work, he asked if I had seen Sweets. I replied, “She was under the crib the last time I saw her.” I then added, “I hope she didn’t crawl under there and die.” Now, at the time, I had a Daycare in my home and my little 4-year-old friend, Cadence, stood outside the spare bedroom while Pat checked under the crib. I couldn’t believe it when he said, “She’s dead.” Oh my goodness, that was unexpected. Pat quickly gathered supplies for her burial, he found an old piece of carpet and wrapped it around her lifeless body. Then he slipped her into a couple of garbage bags and we headed out to the woods where he had dug a hole for her. Cadence helped us perform a little service by offering a sweet prayer and we said our goodbyes. It was very precious.
A couple of weeks later our daughter and grandson came for a weekend visit. It was in the midst of playing with one another that Cadence turned to Sarah and asked if she had heard the news, the sad news, that Sweets had died. “Yes” Sarah replied, “It is sad, isn’t it? But now she is in kitty heaven.” Cadence seemed a bit confused by this statement and you could read it on her face. She took a deep breath and let out a sigh. She tilted her head, and then she furrowed her brows a bit. Her hand came to her chin, she puckered her lips and now deep in thought, she frowned while concern seemed to overtake her. Finally, after watching her struggle with the thoughts that seemed to overwhelm her, she spoke. “Ummm…. or actually, maybe, she’s wrapped up in a garbage bag out under the dirt.” Oh my goodness! Sarah and I could not contain our laughter. What Cadence's eyes saw and her ears heard from Sarah’s lips, were worlds apart. She witnessed what happened to the cat. She was there when Sweets was placed in the ground and convincing her otherwise would be tough.
In John 20, we are made aware of Thomas, a disciple that was with Jesus when He walked to the cross. He witnessed what happened to Him. He watched as they placed Him on the cross, he knew where they had taken Christ’s lifeless body, so hearing the other disciples tell him, “We have seen the Lord” caused him to question their sanity, I am sure.
“Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ So he said to them, ‘Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.’ And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, ‘Peace to you!’ Then He said to Thomas, ‘Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.’ And Thomas answered and said to Him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed’” (John 20:24-29).
What a precious moment that is for me to read. Jesus, showing Thomas what Thomas needed in order to believe. Don’t you just love how important we are to Him? God wants us to believe, even when we can’t see, even when it may feel impossible to believe, He says, “Do not be unbelieving but believing….Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Reach out to Him. Touch Him and be blessed by believing.
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