My daughter, Booger, of Tampa, FL, entered Paradise on Wednesday, 25 April 2001. She had been diagnosed with probable cancer, with a growing tumor in her chest cavity. The tumor resulted in accumulated fluid which made it difficult for her to breathe. She had also lost more than 2 lbs from her normal 10 lbs over the course of four months. She and her sole surviving sister, Sweetie, had just celebrated their 10th birthdays about a week prior.
Sweetie
Released: 20 January 2006
My other daughter, Sweetie, of Washington, DC, entered Paradise on Friday, 20 January 2006. Eleven months earlier, her doctor said her blood was too sweet. Well, duh! Her name is "Sweetie" and that's just what she was. More recently, her doctor said her heart was getting bigger. Again, duh! She was full of love that grew with each day I spent with her. Finally, the doctor said there was a mass in her lung that probably started from the small mass in one of her breasts. Unfortunately, I could not explain that one.
Their Stories...
Booger and Sweetie were born in mid-April 1991 at Ha Ha Tonka State Park in Camdenton, Missouri. According to her Aunt Kristin who was Park Director at the time, Booger, Sweetie, and their approximately five siblings, were "hatched" underneath Kristin's bed at the state-owned house within the park. Their mother, Spot or "Spottie" was "...a gentle loving stray" calico (which explains her varied colored kittens). It is unknown exactly who their father was, but it might have been "Little Buddy" (formerly known as "Old Person") who also could have been her half brother as well.
During the following Memorial Day weekend, Booger and Sweetie were adopted by their father, Darin, who was attending graduate school in Bloomington, Indiana. There, the sisters enjoyed climbing trees, walking on house rooftops, and hiding from their father in the bushes. One morning, Booger was enjoying her outdoor freedom. When her father called for her to return inside, she was no where to be found. Late for class, he left her outside (her sister Sweetie had obediently returned when called). A couple hours later, Dad returned to witness Booger hanging outside on the screen door crying to get inside. He wondered just how long she had been hanging there.
Following two years in Bloomington, Booger and Sweetie returned to their home state of Missouri to live in St Louis in 1993. Though living in an inner-city neighborhood, they nonetheless enjoyed sunning on a large outdoor deck. Booger even found a couple secret moments to sneak away and cross the street to a row of bushes, perfect for covert surveillance. Sweetie, on the other hand, preferred to stay closer to home and look for bugs underneath the deck.
After three years in St Louis, they relocated again in 1996, this time to sunny Orlando, Florida. In April 1999, the family moved to Tampa, where Booger spent her final two years. During five years in Florida at one apartment and two houses, Booger and Sweetie bit the tails off of quite a few lizards. After only ten years on the Earth, the Heavenly Father recalled his angel, Booger, home. Her work was done and it was time to rest.
However, Sweetie, had more work to accomplish. She stayed in Tampa a couple more years, albeit a bit lonelier without her sister. She became increasingly fond of spending time in the back yard, enjoying the sun on the patio and watching birds and squirrels. She even lived life on the edge. One evening, her father came to bring her inside for the night. When he got to the patio, he saw a family of three racoons walk by Sweetie, who was sitting very calmly on the patio watching them. She didn't react at all and the racoons passed by within three feet of her without incident. Then her father quickly nabbed her and brought her to safety inside, providing lots of extra love.
In 2003, Sweetie moved once more, this time to the nation's capital. She even got to fly on an airplane for the move! Her new living space was significantly smaller (from 3BR/2Ba, garage, and yard in Tampa to only 675 square feet in DC!) and it was on the second floor. This made back yard safaris more difficult so she grew to appreciate her superior position from the window sills, watching the parade of cars, buses, baby strollers, dogs, runners and other people go by. Life was good, maybe not as active, but very comfortable.
As Sweetie became ill recently, her Grandma Nancee reminded her Aunt Kristin and me of how Booger and Sweetie came to me: "Kristin, when Darin was choosing his kitten at your place, I remember that
he instantly fell for Booger and that was that. There was Sweetie and
another kitten just like her except it was gold instead of grey, both
long-haired, among the large litter - I thought both of them were going to
be so beautiful and I couldn't stand to think that you might just "get rid
of" them. For some reason, I couldn't take them, so I started to work on
Darin - I told him that his black kitten would be so much happier if it had
a companion, and two wouldn't be any harder to take care of than one. He
was pretty hesitant at first, but I finally won him over. I think Booger
was always his favorite, but he grew to love Sweetie."
Grandma was right. Booger was my favorite. She was so loving and her loss hurt so much. Sweetie, on the other hand, seemed to be a bit colder to me...not as affectionate. I used to joke that, after Booger's mysterious departure, she figured she'd better straighten up or she'd be next soon! But I was blessed with 5 more years with Sweetie and, during that time, I grew to love her so very much. And Sweetie grew to love me, becoming increasingly affectionate, as witnessed by her incredibly loud purring.
Now Booger and Sweetie are reunited to enjoy peace and warmth together and in the company of those who went before...Mao, Luke, Otis, Pooter, Mew, Thai Thai, Miss Kitty, and Oscar.
THEY ARE DEEPLY MISSED HERE ON EARTH!
Web page design by Darin
Last updated: 20 January 2006
