KAHLUA- HIS SWEET WAYS

He loved to be brushed.
He loved to have the top of his head stroked.
He loved to be outside, and he would check out the whole cul de sac.
He tolerated other cats, just calmly walking away when confronted by one.
He loved to be talked to.
He would talk to Bill.
He would look steadily into my eyes and communicate his thoughts.
He would reach up to the kitchen counter and help me open the cat food can.
He would stay beside me when I watered the yard.
He would come to meet me at the car when I arrived home. (The last afternoon, when he was so sick, he still came to the driveway to greet me home from school.)
He would cuddle beside me in the bed. (But the last night, when he was so sick, he looked at me for the last time with his eyes begging me to do something to help him, and then gave up on me and wouldn't stay beside me, but went into the bathroom and curled up by the wall. I couldn't tell him there was nothing I could do but put him out of his misery in the morning. The vet had done all that he could, but his kidneys just would not heal. It broke my heart that he gave up on me.)
KAHLUA, WE WILL NEVER FORGET YOU AND YOUR SWEET WAYS.

I adopted Kahlua at the animal shelter about 3 years ago. He was de-clawed (so he was probably an indoor cat only) and neutered. They told me he was about 4 years old, but the vet thought he was closer to 7. They told me nothing about how he came to be in the shelter.

He died on Tues, September 25, 2007. The vet gave him a shot and he slowly put his head down and went to sleep, and then the vet administered the final drug. We took him home and buried him in the back yard.