7 : Domino - Something Old

An Old Friend

 

I often think fondly of my old friend, someone that was a pivotal part of our family, its hard to recall a time he wasn't there.  Someone that was always patiently waiting nearby, who would listen to your stories without judgement, a loyal friend.  Someone that was there each day when I got home from school, from when I first began kindergarten right through to high school.  Someone who was always watching after us as we walked along the street.  No matter whether it was walking to school, heading off for the day to play or even walking to the local shops, he was there.  Someone that slept in my bed so often that there was a permanent indent on my bed spread.  I grew up learning not to sleep straight, with legs shaped around my warm mate or curled up in a ball so there was room for us both.  

 

Yes, my old friend was by my side through many of those precious moments of childhood, through all the hard times and the good times.  Always there, in the background, happy with any sort of attention that went his way.  Every home we lived in during childhood, every state that we moved to and there were many, he was there.  He never left us, always loyal, one of the few consistencies of my childhood.  He grew old as we grew up, and then one day he was gone...

 

He was quietly put to sleep one day when we were at school.  It was for his own good as he was deteriorating rapidly with a terrible lesion/skin cancer on his nose.  I had always dreaded his demise, I only wish I was given the opportunity to say goodbye to my loyal old friend.  He slipped away quietly yet made such a big impact on my entire childhood.  I've never had another... my old friend Domino the cat.