Sad End, New Beginning

As an end to 2008, we have some sad news to share. For those who know, we adopted two cats from the animal shelter in July. Mykell was doing community service there and...you get the idea. So we ended up with a black kitten, Phantom (the one that destroyed our Christmas tree), and a young blind cat that we named Lyra. Unfortunately, Lyra died December 26.

Lyra was a special project for our family. Blind from birth, she was abandoned and found in a 7-11 parking lot, where she was reported to the shelter. Her situation had been so traumatic that she lost most of the hair from the back half of her body and she was extremely thin and sickly. Her life at the shelter was dull, since she was not allowed to leave her cage or the other cats would beat up on her. But she was so loving. We decided to take her home and see if we could bring her back to health.

At first, Erik thought we were nuts (we didn't ask his permission), and wanted us to take Lyra back, but I couldn't do it. We had had a foster care adoption fall through in the past and somehow that experience echoed this one, brining up all kinds of memories for us to reexamine. The kids pleaded, almost in tears, not to give her back because they didn't want to feel that sense of failure and regret that we had after the foster care ordeal. They would watch Lyra walking contentedly around the laundry room, which we made her domain, and they couldn't bear to think of her being sentenced to a tiny cage at the shelter again. Each one of the kids took opportunity to talk to me privately, convinced Lyra was happier with us, and that we couldn't give her back. So I put it off . . . and off . . . and off.

Over the next month we saw a complete transformation in Lyra. With great pet food from Erik's work, and strong antibiotics, she started to regain her health, grew back her hair and learned to get along with Phantom enough that we could let them roam around the house together. It was incredible to see how well she could navigate through the house, watching her learn to manage stairs, follow sounds to find people, and try to play with toys that kept rolling away. Even Erik changed his attitude, saying that Lyra was the best cat we had (we now had 3). She stayed on the floor instead of jumping on things, she was entertaining to watch, and the most trouble she got in was tripping people up as she tried to be part of the action. But she was never completely cured. Every month she would develop the same respiratory problem and would have to get an injection to help her along. Eventually, she succumbed to that same sickness, and she stopped breathing as I held her, trying to make her more comfortable.

It was a sad morning when she left us and we still miss her. Jason says we need to go back to the shelter and get another blind cat, but I think she was one of a kind. We don't usually get this sentimental over pets, especially ones that die within six months, but Lyra was a special case. She helped us show compassion, taught us that disabilities aren't always disabling, helped us heal after an emotional injury, and most importantly, she gave us the chance to make a difference. We will never forget the good that we were able to do, bringing a sick, neglected cat back to health and making her part of a loving home.

As we look ahead to 2009, we see many great milestones coming for our family. Jason will be baptized, Rachel will have her first dance recital, Bryce is waiting for acceptance to the Academy, and Mykell is seriously looking at colleges. Many good things await us and it is exciting to watch the kids grow and progress. But as we look ahead, make our resolutions, and outline some goals, we are also trying to look outside our own family. Taking our lesson to heart, we hope to reach out to others this year and see where else we can make a real difference.

Wishing you a hopeful and rewarding 2009

The Aidukaitis Family