In Loving Memory of our Favourite Aloe Cat

This week Andee and I lost a member of our family.  Our sweet little Aloe Cat went to be with his Creator, as God was and is faithful in reconciling His creation back to Himself.  I truly believe that Aloe’s purpose on this earth was to love us, his human parents, and for us to have a little fur baby to love.  And he indeed fulfilled his purpose by providing us with so much joy, laughter, happiness, snuggles, and friendship.  He must have known he only had a few years with us so he made the most of it by being the most amazing kitty we could have ever asked for.  He was perfect – perfect for us.

We will miss so many things about our sweet boy.  So many in fact, that I compiled a list of just a few of all the many qualities we will miss in our Aloe Kitty:

• -          His adorable squeeks and his inability to meow
• -          His passive nature; never biting or scratching anyone
• -          His loving spirit
• -          His daily requirement of pets that we did our best to fulfill
• -          Having him sit on our laps and beside us on the couch
• -          My favourite Aloe Kitty – kneeding on the bed
• -          ‘Turkey’ Cat
• -          He smelled amazing all the time
• -          Sitting on the center console of the car during long car rides home
• -          How beautiful and handsome he always looked
• -          How he greeted us at the door with so much love and affection
• -          Roll-Polls and snuggles
• -          His love for ‘mouse-mouse’
• -          Sooo predictable Aloe Kitty
• -          Just made it Aloe Kitty
• -          Allocate the Aloe Cat
• -          Singing every song with lyrics about how much we love him
• -          Our Choop Face
• -          How he hated Tard the Grumpy Cat
• -          Sky Pets
• -          His high pitched soprano voice
• -          How he would lie under the Christmas tree
• -          Always lying on top of the clean laundry
• -          His sweet little face
• -          How much we loved him and he loved us
• -          Everything 

It is so fitting that this weekend we celebrated Easter.  But before we could celebrate, we remember Good Friday and mourn the loss of innocence – the Lamb that was slain – our Saviour, Jesus.  This week we are able to taste just a glimpse of the suffering that took place on this day as our little form of furry innocence was ripped from us.  But God is good and only he is able to redeem.  We refuse to waste this oppourtunity to share both in Christ’s suffering and in His Glory. 

This is a season of refinement for Andee and I, and I feel as if we have been thrown into the fire and can only hope and pray that we come out purified and filled with Faith and Joy in response to his goodness that is still ever present in our lives.  Though He gives and takes away from us, I will still sing with gladness to the one who is all that I need.  

‘In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.’ – 1 Peter 1:6-9

‘Not only are our afflictions are momentary, not only are they light in comparison to eternity, but they are totally meaningful.  Every second of our pain from the fallen nature of this world, our misery here, in the path of obedience, is producing a glory that will come because of that suffering.  It wasn’t meaningless.  It’s doing something – of course we can’t see what God is doing!  It’s working for us an eternal weight of glory!  Therefore do not lose heart, but take these truths and focus on them.  Preach them to yourself every morning until your heart sings with confidence that you are cared for by the Most High.’ – ‘Though You Slay Me’ – Audio Excerpt – John Piper

Our little Aloe Kitty will be missed with an ache that rivals nothing I have ever experienced in my own short time on this earth.  But he will never be forgotten as our first love, our good boy, and our special little guy.  Goodbye my sweet sweet treasure – until we see you again, you will always be in our hearts.