You followed my daughter out of the woods in 1997. I watched you walking toward the deck right on the heels of my daughter on that cool if not cold afternoon. Finally the two of you reached the deck and then the back door. My 10 year old daughter said "Dad, can we keep him"? "He followed me and I couldn't lose him". My allergies of fur are well documented. In about an hour and a half, my throat will start to swell if in a closed in area with a cat, dog, rabbit or ferret. I wish it wasn't the case. I gave myself shots for three years trying to help the situation to no avail. I looked at my daughter and said, "You know I am allergic and we can't".... Then I looked at you and said, "ohhhh kaaaay... we will try to make it work".
You were small and skinny and dirty and orange and white in color underneath all the burrs and dirt. Your eyes were a beautiful green and you were not fully grown. My daughter picked you up and you moved to get one paw on either side of her head as if to hug her. A practice you would continue throughout your nearly 17 years. We cleaned you up and sure as the sun sets, I was watery eyed, sneezing and losing my air passage before I knew it. You would have to live in the garage. It was well insulated and we felt you would do well there. You did. The kids were all over you constantly and I spent as much time with you as I could given my allergy. Over the next 16 plus years you were in every Christmas photo with us, and in many many photos with our family. You "helped" with many family projects and when I was working under the car, you would get into my lap and sleep. I can never remember you ever taking a swipe at any of us. My sons friends played with you as did my daughters. You had many human friends and apparently only one cat friend. A gentle, well mannered gray and white shorthair named Lexus. In 2008 when I was going through divorce and my life was at its darkest you would not go to the woods when I was at home. You wouldn't even leave the garage. I let you in the house as much as my body could withstand. You would stay in my lap and fall asleep on my chest. One evening I came home from work and in through the garage at the pinnacle of depression. You followed me in without me even knowing it. I plopped down on the couch and you jumped into my lap. I was crying like a baby and there you sat. In what seemed like an eternity but was more like 20 minutes, I looked down at you and your soaking wet orange coat. It made me cry even more. You KNEW I needed you and you were not going anywhere. If not for you I may have died of depression. You were always there when my life was at its worst. As things got better, you began going back out into the woods again. Sometimes overnight. You would return, hungry, tired and full of burrs as you had for many years. You so loved the woods and the creek behind the house. But every evening, when I would come home from work, you would be in the driveway to greet me, talking to me as I walked to the house. I will never forget the evenings you were there for my most desperate hours, head butting me and sleeping on my chest until I had to take you to the garage because I was getting short of breath from my allergies to you, my precious buddy. My close friend will never be forgotten. You were better to me than most, if not all, human friends I have ever known. As of this writing, it has been 10 days since I made the most difficult decision I have ever had to make.... I still cant believe you are gone. I miss you Mitty, I will never forget, and I will see you and we will play once again.... Your human Dad, Jeff