The next 19.5 years are something I will never forget. I can't believe that a little black kitty that no one wanted could bring so much joy. You were primarily a lap cat. You had a talent of getting onto a lap, no matter how small of a gap the opening was. You would get on a lap and purr, purr, purr for hours. You had to have constant body contact while sleeping with us at night. You would purr in our faces while we tried to sleep. Sometimes we would get mad, but you didn't care...you just kept at it. The feeling of your warm, purring body next to me at night was indescribable. Maybe what I would imagine heaven might be like. Once a doctor said you had a lot of Siamese in you. That explains your cute, round head and raspy meow.

There is not enough room or time to write all of my memories here. There was never a wasted day or moment with you. You were there through so much, always remaining the sweet (and feisty) girl that I loved. You had the sweetness of a black cat, but the attitude of a female cat and you were also completely spoiled. I am so happy you never had to experience the hard and cruel life that so many cats have to go through.

When you were about 10 years old, you started to get sick and you were vomiting whenever you ate. We took you to the vet and they said you had "pre-lymphoma". Another vet wanted to start you on chemotherapy that day and said that you could have another 5 years left. We didn't want to do that, so we researched and started home preparing your food. You immediately bounced back and stopped vomiting. I home prepped food for you (and your step brother and step sister by default) once a week for almost 10 years. You would have some episodes once a week and throw up a few times, but in general it really helped you. I also felt a lot better knowing everything that was going into your food. Around this time, we moved from West LA to Tehachapi.

When you were about 12 years old, we noticed a limp in your walk. The vet said it was arthritis and there was not much that can be done. The arthritis got progressively worse. The last 2 years of your life were mostly spent sleeping in a cat bed with a heating pad. I think the hardest part for you was that you couldn't jump on the bed anymore and you couldn't get into our laps. For the last year, you would wait until I woke up in the morning, then you would slowly come out and want to sit on my lap.

We moved to San Diego about 2 months before you passed away. I can't believe how much you blossomed while you were here. You loved it so much. I think maybe the air and weather reminded you of when you lived in Santa Monica. You didn't throw up once here, which was mind blowing. Your fur was really matted because you couldn't groom yourself anymore. The last week you were around, I spent a few days combing you. I got all the mats out. You were so happy when I was doing it, purring so loud and rubbing your head into me, even though I think it was hurting you. You looked so good and I was so happy to see your fur all nicely groomed....then you got sick. You were crying by our doors all day and all night, which was not like you.

We took you to the vet. They pulled a tooth out by hand and I was hoping that was the reason, but the blood work came back and showed that you were in end stage renal failure. We went to the vet to get the subcutaneous fluid injections, hoping it would help. It did help a little, but not by much. We had a trip to Mammoth planned for the next week and we decided that we had to bring you with us. You were by my feet in a comfy cat bed the whole trip. When I looked into your tired eyes, I felt like you were so happy we were taking you. That first night there was hard for you. You kept meowing and getting up, trying to get to a secluded place (I've heard this is common for a dying cat). I kept following you, petting you, trying to give you water and bringing you back to your comfy place next to my bed. Around 5:30 AM on May 8, 2023, I heard you crying again. I looked at you and I saw that you laid on your side. Your breathing was labored. I knew you were dying. I was lightly petting you as you took your last breath. A few seconds later, you stretched your legs out. I kept petting you and you felt distinctly different. I knew you had passed. I gently picked you up, placed you on the cat bed and covered you with a black towel so that only your head was showing. You looked like a sleeping angel.

I was in shock the rest of that day. We took you to the vet in Mammoth to arrange to have you cremated and have your ashes mailed to us. The next day I was so sad and down. I know I had so much time with you, but it still didn't make it any easier. I selfishly missed you (and still do), even though I know how hard the last few years must have been for you. I was skiing with your Mommy and looked up at the sky and saw a rainbow halo around the sun. It was there all day. I took some pictures of it. Everyone says that it was you telling me where you are and that you're ok. I like to think that's true. I love you so much. Rest in Peace, my little Lilly.