Some friends of ours came home yesterday to find that their cat had died after being hit by a car. After having some time and tears for themselves they had to decide how to tell their two children especially their five year old daughter.
I had a lot of pets as a kid and when they died my parents used to let me spend time with them. I used to take my time stroking and cuddling them. Sometimes I would take clippings of their hair and then together we would bury them in the garden. This whole process would take hours and as I think about it now, I love that my parents let me go through the process in my own time.
The first pet that dies when I was a kid was our kitten Baby Puss. I was only five and she was also hit by a car. We planted a small tree on her grave and it was always called the Baby Puss tree.
As parents I think having a pet teaches our children about love and responsibility. About sharing and generosity. But at the other end they also teach our kids about life and death. Grief and how to process it.
So today spend a moment thinking about your pets past and present in memory of Kaylee and the little girl who is mourning her first pet. I'm remembering all of mine and what each of them gave me. Thank you Mum, Dad and Inge for letting me share my childhood with so many animals.
Baby Puss, Kane, Marco, GT, Mowie, Soxie, Maya, Toto, Arthur, Tara, Powderpuff, Pickles, Bluey, Meega, Morris, Thai, Oden, Angus, Kira, five rabbits, five guinea pigs, about 50 fish, 10 mice, and I'm sure I've missed a few.
Thursday, 26 August 2010
Grief and Loss.
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2 comments:
I remember so many of those pets! I don't think I ever met Baby Puss, but I definitely remember the Baby Puss tree. (Especially since we went the whole "tree on the dead pet" route ourselves, even for the chickens.)
D'you know, I remember GT and Mowie very well, but I'd forgotten all about Kane, Marco, Soxie, and Maya. Well, until now.
I actually felt as I typed that out that I was missing a whole bunch of them. It didnt look as much on paper as it felt.
I can certainly remember that there was a black and white cat we have for about 6 months before it moved on and a dog that the postman stole. But I cant remember their names and decided that seeing as they were both only with us for about 6 months maybe it was ok to leave them out as they were kind of just staying with us for an extended holiday.
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