My Family Breeds Wild Winter Seeds Like Me

He is my shadow and perhaps the creature I've spent the most time with on this earth since September 2020.

Precocious and curious, he embodied the "Id" for his first year on this earth. He still does in many ways. But he's growing up and changing, becoming just a little more world-aware every day. Still rambunctious and jealous, perhaps a little feral, but also protective, loving, and forever finding ways to make me laugh in exasperation.

I've never met a cat who ran excitedly to the kitchen whenever the freezer opened so he could receive his very own ice cube, one that growled at any and every visitor and delivery truck that comes to the door. He loves jumping in the center of the bed the minute he hears it being made with fresh sheets, and often can be found between the liner and the curtain when I'm taking a shower.

In the grand scheme of things, he's new to my world/life, but still is very much at its center. Every day, he and I find a new way to coexist (while only slightly driving the other crazy).

In these quiet moments, when he is sleeping and the wind is howling and the sky is turning colors that only winter sunsets seem to gift us, I can't help but feel my heart simultaneously swell and break knowing that these days are fleeting, no matter how many more we may have.

#happysad #griefwriting #griefthoughts #grief #love #cats