Our Marco

Definitely one of a kind was our little Marco, nicknamed my Charmin Kitty because she was so squeezably soft. Her pregnant mama was rescued from the streets of Philadelphia, Pa and delivered her litter safely in the care of her foster mom who volunteered with an organization called Cat Shack.

Separating siblings or just choosing between the last two left was an impossible decision for my husband to make so being the softy he is he comes home with two kittens. Two little fuzzy, fly away furballs we named Marco and Polo.

These two had to have been the most pampered kittens imaginable. Our kids were at that age where they could be very responsible with pets yet not too old that they became easily tired of their existence. We always were a multi-cat household and over the years other cats were adopted into our home, much to the dislike of these two disgruntled princesses.

As Marco got older she clearly left her message to us how she felt by leaving behind as my husband joked "golden honey droplets". Driving us crazy with her indignant behavior and bugging to go outside to get away from the others, we finally relented. Not meant to be an indoor and outdoor cat, it was a decision to either ban her to the basement because she couldn't be trusted, or give her the freedom she craved at the risk of losing her.

We got away with it for about five years until a fateful evening in October 2010. Torturing ourselves with guilt over her "could have been prevented" death, once enough time passed to see things rationally I now realize that she lived her life as she wanted and had a wonderful time with us. She was definitely a favorite and just thinking about her cute antics brings forth tears but in the world of cats she was one of the lucky ones and had a wonderful eight years to do as she pleased.

In a household like ours there will always be someone new at our door who needs our love and care. In life, "It is what it is". Words of wisdom from a dear family member. We love our pets and do the best we can at the time. Being totally responsible for their care we tend to forget that they are individuals too and want to lead their own lives. We can only do so much to keep them safe and healthy.

I do pray a lot and thank God every night when everyone is in the house and safe for another day. Right now we only have one other cat who goes outside. She gets herself so upset when she feels trapped with other cats that it is just too chaotic. I have yet to see her near the road but again she has her own mind. So I just pray for her safety and listen for her at the door.