Mrs. Stein�s a widow.

Last night, I went to put the cats in the basement as I do every night because Mrs. Stein has a penchant for stomping on your face in the middle of the night. When I was living alone, Mr. Stein kept her in line. He always slept on one side of the foot of my bed, she on the other. But when both cats were booted off the bed to make room for my husband, she got rather unruly. Last night, before I climbed into bed with a book, I trapped Mrs. Stein under the hall table and carried her around the house looking for Mr. Stein, who always goes downstairs of his own accord as soon as you say, �Bedtime.� Except I couldn�t find him, and I realized as I was looking that I hadn�t seen him since morning when he was sleeping on the chair in my office while I worked. Had he gotten out the porch door while I was in the garden? It wouldn�t have been the first time. I headed down to the basement and found him in one of his favorite sleeping spots, behind the perpetually warm dehumidifier. I think he died in his sleep. I hope He would have been fifteen years old in June.

I am feeling incredibly sad. I�m not one of those people who think of pets and surrogate children, but Max was always a good roommate. He was clean, he kept to himself most of the time and he was always around for a good snuggle on the sofa. He got me through more ugly breakups than I can count. As I�d sit crying next to a box of Kleenex and a container of Ben & Jerry�s, he�s sit quietly next to me, stretching up a soft paw to touch my cheek if I wailed for too long.

We buried him last night in the woods near AJ�s secret house. It was 11 at night and we were out there with shovels and a flashlight. I carried Max out and my husband dug a hole while I held the flashlight in our pajamas and rainboots. We were joking about how the neighbors must think we�re up to no good. And then my husband was done and he put Max in the hole. �Are there any words you want to say?� He was a good cat. I will miss him.

Goodbye, Max. You finally get to sleep outside.

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