Sid

Sid you were my best friend and one of the bravest and most loyal cats I’ve known. I was 15 when I met you and you were so small I had to bottle feed you. Every night you slept cuddled next to my head on my pillow or tucked in my arms, licking my arm and giving me a “kitty bath.” When you were about a year old, you disappeared for almost a month. One night, after weeks of tears, my dad told me I had a visitor and you came bounding up the stairs, skinny and hungry, straight into my arms. You came back to me and were my constant ever since. You were with me during the pangs of adolescence and adulthood, through times of heartbreak and joy. You really blossomed after we moved to Colorado from New Mexico. You loved taking naps in the garden, and plotting with the dog for scraps, even eating from the same plate. The last year of your life was a good one of many. For my 33rd birthday you went on an adventure. You saw your first stream and the sand dunes and I will cherish the memory of you and Wattie, our Rottweiler, sleeping in the back seat and you bravely putting your paws on the dashboard and looking at passing cars and mountains. Sid passed away on October 8th, 2012, more than a month after our other cat Leia was lost. That morning I kissed your head and went to work. When we got home that afternoon we found you on the floor, struggling for breath. You died almost 8 minutes later, like you were waiting for me. I am so grateful I had a chance to say goodbye, to tell you how much you meant, how much love and joy you brought into my life. I miss my two kitty girls and know one day I will see you both again. Your family loves and misses you, Sid pickle head.
-- Melanie Roybal