Part of the Family

Last year Annah and I lost one of our cats to the traffic constantly hurrying by our house. Finding Adeaba dead in our neighbor’s yard was traumatic. Even worse was carrying her still soft body to the backyard where we had to dig a shallow grave between our house, the woods and bouts of tears. Annah and I fought about whether to pack the dirt after we finished cover her body.
Having animals as pets is one of the most peculiar relationships humans can have with the animal kingdom. It’s really only then that one begins to realize the intellect and personalities behind other living creatures. After watching my cat’s behavior for the past couple years, I’ve begun to think my cat is more like most people I know than she is not.
This photograph of a grave was in the backyard of a house near where a friend and I were gathering firewood recently. The care these people took in placing the cross between the two pine trees made me think of how much affection people have for their pets.