(in the manner of L.M.A.)

It is our painful duty to record the sudden and mysterious
disappearance
of our cherished friend, Christian, a five-year-old Japanese bobtail.
This lovely and beloved cat was the pet of a large circle of warm and
admiring friends; for his beauty attracted all eyes, his graces and
virtues endeared him to all hearts, and his loss is deeply felt
by the whole community.

When last seen, he was strolling through our back yard, as was his
wont
in the morning hours. Weeks have passed, but no trace of him has been
discovered, and we relinquish
all hope, remove his blanket from his favorite chair, set aside her
dish
and water bowl, and weep for him as one lost to us forever, nevermore
to return.

================================

Our rooms are very still today,
The loneliness...a void;
That dented pillow mutely mourns
Companionship...destroyed!
That fluffy ball of purring fur--
My comfort--subtle teacher--
Has left a tender tolerance
For every living creature.
My traits and faults were audited
By questioning, loving eyes;
All tests of friendship were fulfilled
By trust that verified.
--Nellie Baldwin Rudser

================================

Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains
unawakened. --Anatole France

================================

We who choose to surround ourselves with lives even more temporary
than
our own live within a fragile circle, easily and often breached.
Unable
to accept its awful gaps, we still would live no other way. We
cherish
memory as the only certain immortality, never fully understanding the
necessary plan.
--Irving Townsend

================================

Mankind's true moral test, its fundamental test (which lies deeply
buried from view), consists of its attitude towards those who are at
its
mercy: animals. And in this respect mankind has suffered a
fundamental debacle, a debacle so fundamental that all others stem
from it. --Milan Kundera

================================

I believe that the loss of a beloved companion animal is like no other
loss because our relationships with animals are like no other. Our
culture tells us that an animal companion is an engaging toy, and that
our grief over its death is alarming and ill-paced. And our culture
is
just flat wrong....Animals are more to us than we know. Their
partnership with us is a holy one that endures across a lifetime and
possibly beyond.
--Susan Chernak McElroy

================================

Since you have gone the sun has left the sky,
No breezes blow,
No birds sing
To ease the aching vacuum in my heart.
I shall not forget your gentle ways;
No judgements made,
No difficult demands,
No needs save one,
To share your life with mine.
Now kind, uncomprehending people say,
"Cheer up, you'll love another pet some day."
--Hilda Lunn

================================

Grieve not,
nor speak of me with tears,
but laugh and talk of me
as if I were beside you...
I loved you so--
'twas Heaven here with you.
--Isla Paschal Richardson

================================

Aionía aftoú e mnéme--May his memory be eternal.
--from the Eastern Orthodox requiem service

================================

Fare thee well, companion dear!
Fare for ever well, nor fear,
Tiny though thou art, to stray
Down the uncompanion'd way!
We without thee, little friend,
Many years have not to spend;
What are left, will hardly be
Better than we spent with thee.
--Matthew Arnold

(in the manner of L.M.A.)

It is our painful duty to record the sudden and mysterious disappearance
of our cherished friend, Christian, a five-year-old Japanese bobtail.
This lovely and beloved cat was the pet of a large circle of warm and
admiring friends; for his beauty attracted all eyes, his graces and
virtues endeared him to all hearts, and his loss is deeply felt
by the whole community.

When last seen, he was strolling through our back yard, as was his wont
in the morning hours. Weeks have passed, but no trace of him has been
discovered, and we relinquish
all hope, remove his blanket from his favorite chair, set aside her dish
and water bowl, and weep for him as one lost to us forever, nevermore to

================================

Our rooms are very still today,
The loneliness...a void;
That dented pillow mutely mourns
Companionship...destroyed!
That fluffy ball of purring fur--
My comfort--subtle teacher--
Has left a tender tolerance
For every living creature.
My traits and faults were audited
By questioning, loving eyes;
All tests of friendship were fulfilled
By trust that verified.
--Nellie Baldwin Rudser

================================

Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened.
--Anatole France

================================

We who choose to surround ourselves with lives even more temporary than
our own live within a fragile circle, easily and often breached. Unable
to accept its awful gaps, we still would live no other way. We cherish
memory as the only certain immortality, never fully understanding the
necessary plan.
--Irving Townsend

================================

Mankind's true moral test, its fundamental test (which lies deeply
buried from view), consists of its attitude towards those who are at its
mercy: animals. And in this respect mankind has suffered a fundamental
debacle, a debacle so fundamental that all others stem from it.
--Milan Kundera

================================

I believe that the loss of a beloved companion animal is like no other
loss because our relationships with animals are like no other. Our
culture tells us that an animal companion is an engaging toy, and that
our grief over its death is alarming and ill-paced. And our culture is
just flat wrong....Animals are more to us than we know. Their
partnership with us is a holy one that endures across a lifetime and
possibly beyond.
--Susan Chernak McElroy

================================

Since you have gone the sun has left the sky,
No breezes blow,
No birds sing
To ease the aching vacuum in my heart.
I shall not forget your gentle ways;
No judgements made,
No difficult demands,
No needs save one,
To share your life with mine.
Now kind, uncomprehending people say,
"Cheer up, you'll love another pet some day."
--Hilda Lunn

================================

Grieve not,
nor speak of me with tears,
but laugh and talk of me
as if I were beside you...
I loved you so--
'twas Heaven here with you.
--Isla Paschal Richardson

================================

Aionía aftoú e mnéme--May his memory be eternal.
--from the Eastern Orthodox requiem service

================================

Fare thee well, companion dear!
Fare for ever well, nor fear,
Tiny though thou art, to stray
Down the uncompanion'd way!
We without thee, little friend,
Many years have not to spend;
What are left, will hardly be
Better than we spent with thee.
--Matthew Arnold

<(((*> It is our painful duty to record the sudden and mysterious disappearance
<(((*> of our cherished friend, Christian, a five-year-old Japanese bobtail.

(in the manner of L.M.A.)

It is our painful duty to record the sudden and mysterious disappearance
of our cherished friend, Christian, a five-year-old Japanese bobtail.
This lovely and beloved cat was the pet of a large circle of warm and
admiring friends; for his beauty attracted all eyes, his graces and
virtues endeared him to all hearts, and his loss is deeply felt
by the whole community.

When last seen, he was strolling through our back yard, as was his wont
in the morning hours. Weeks have passed, but no trace of him has been
discovered, and we relinquish
all hope, remove his blanket from his favorite chair, set aside her dish
and water bowl, and weep for him as one lost to us forever, nevermore to return.