Sergeant Marshmallow

Today Dennis and I said goodbye to a wonderful friend and family member. Sergeant Marshmallow, little big brother, the boy with the coffee bean toes and salmon nose is no longer in pain. We had two months longer with him than we had expected. I am grateful for his presence in our lives and that extra slice of time so that we could fully focus and not take him for granted in that pattern we all so easily fall into. He will always be a special furry boy who rests in our hearts.

SgtAndTheBabyI remember when he was rescued by Dennis’ bosses at R&H. When he came home to us he was a small, curious, cautious little guy maybe 6 weeks old. He would explore carpet island, too hesitant to step out onto the sea of hardwood floor that stretched beyond. Several days later a starving, minuscule bag of bones joined us. Ratatouille cried and cried all the way home but once reunited with Sgt he quieted and settled in. 2E gained weight, and gained more becoming big little brother, the jelly bean toed adventurer. They became brave together, each in his own way.

I look at Sgt’s body now and it’s just that, a body. One that has stiffened and doesn’t have the spark I will always remember. I wait for my daughter to come home so she can have closure too. And we will cry more together as family and laugh too as we remember.

When my water broke nearly ten years ago Sgt wouldn’t leave my side. He stayed glued to me until Dennis came home from work. He looked over Sienna and helped her become fluent in cat, her first language. His passing marks the end of an era and it will take time to adjust.

This morning after a difficult night, we found him hiding in the kitchen cabinet, curled up sleeping in my grandmother’s old Corningware casserole dish. Somehow it’s fitting that a cat who brought so much comfort could find comfort there during his final night in this life.

I will miss him and yet, he will always be with me as are Thor, Cleo, Heidi, Bozo and Mittens.

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This Post Has One Comment

  1. Chris

    Sorry to hear about your loss. Pets do tend to fill one with good memories wile we have them.

    We had a recent loss of our own, two weeks ago. A little yorkshire terrier, gone by the name of Padro. A rather common name for one like him.

    He was a funny little guy, and full of energy, as old as he was. He was 22 by the time we had him put down. That is never an easy choice. We did wish for him to pass away naturally, so we would have more time with him, and he would have as full of a life as time would allow. But his condition was turning to one of having much pain, and other many failing conditions. We just did not want him to suffer throughout his last few days, or months.

    Our time with him was great. He got into things he should not have, but that was our fault. He loved to ply with a big red ball. He gone into a noisy fit as he played with it. He also loved to play fetch.

    My Dad had called him Snaggel tooth, for his one tooth that peaked out.

    We will miss him, as well as our other dogs. They already show signs of knowing he is no longer around.

    One in particular, a chiwawa mix by the name of Candy. Rather large for a chiwawa. She was the one who got him up if he was sleeping to go outside when it was time to go out. But now he is no longer there for her to find. This has made her a bit upset.

    We do what we can to cheer her up, and help keep her happy.

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