He came to us in the Fall of 1990. We were newlyweds, and this was our first "together pet". His name was Fluffy ... and we rescued him when his owner (whose children had grown tired of the new cat) planned to have him put down. He was only 1-1/2 years old! So even though our apartment at that time didn't allow pets, we brought him home and tacked down the window shades so our landlady wouldn't see him.

It didn't take long for us to figure out that "Fluffy" just wasn't a well-suited name for such a regal animal. So we began calling him Oliver ... short for Oliver Barrett, Ryan O'Neal's character from Love Story.

Rescue cats are not the easiest creatures to live with. For one thing, the children who had first owned Oliver had picked him up by his tail, snapping it at the base. This was the source of Oliver's life-long dislike of children. When company came and brought little ones, Oliver hid under our bed until the coast was clear!

To tell the truth, he wasn't even that crazy about me or Steve those first few years. More than anything, he "tolerated" us as a neccessary means to having constantly full food and water bowls. He made that terrible feline hissing sound whenever we even attempted to come near him, causing Steve to give him the nickname "Hiss Head". And Heaven help the unfortunate who actually picked him ... immediate embedded back claws!

But in time, even though it took a few years, Oliver began to trust us. And it was a wonderful day when I was sitting on the sofa watching television, and he crawled up onto my lap and layed down. After that, he was a loving companion, especially wanting to sit in my lap when I was working on the computer. And he loved to hop in the shower with me. Most cats don't particularly like water, but Oliver sure did. He even came to love sleeping in bed with us, usually sharing my pillow!

But even before he came to love us so much, he always adored his "little brother" ... our miniature Dachschund, Rudy. At first, because Rudy was so tiny when we first brought him home, Oliver thought he was a mouse, because he would try to "bat" him around. But the first time Rudy went rolling across the kitchen floor, Oliver realized his mistake and became a protective older brother to him after that. They were the best of buds!

I never thought about having to lose Oliver. When he became very ill on Friday, February 18th, Steve saw that this might be the end before I was willing to admit it to myself. Oliver layed in the floor, unable to move, and when he wanted a drink, he literally had to drag himself to his water bowl. Steve called our vet, and then came into the living room where I was holding and gently rocking him. He told me that the doctor didn't think it looked good, and he felt that our little boy might have suffered a heart attack or a stroke, and that's why he couldn't move very much. Steve got out his carrier, and I placed him in it, giving him a kiss and a hug.

Thank God, Steve was stronger than I was, and he stayed with Oliver to the very end. He passed away in the vet's office with Steve sitting right there petting him. The doctor had given him a tranquilizer, but they didn't have to give him the last over-dosage to take his life. When the doctor came back in to check on him, Steve told him that he thought he was already gone ... and he was.

We didn't want to bury Ollie, because we know we'll eventually move and we wouldn't want to leave him where we live now. So we had the vet's office handle the cremation, and we now have him in an urn in our living room. Oliver will always be a part of our lives, and although several months have now gone by, I still can't think of him or see a photo of him without breaking down. We miss him so much. So does Rudy, who still will occasionally walk from room to room looking for him. I know we'll eventually get another cat, but the new one will never, ever replace Oliver. He was so special, and there was only one like him.

We miss you, Ollie. And we love you still so much. We know you're in Heaven now, so just wait for us at the Rainbow Bridge. Mommy & Daddy will meet you there one day.

** UP-DATE, 8/4/07: We finally got our home in mid-July of this year. Two weeks after moving in, we lost our precious little Rudy. His heart gave out on the morning of August 2nd. Rudy was fifteen and a half years old. Steve built a little casket for him, and we chose a beautiful shaded spot in our back yard for him. We placed Oliver's ashes in with him, and now they rest together forever ... brothers and best friends.

The song you are listening to is Perhaps Love by John Denver. Oliver brings to us so many beautiful memories of love, that this song seemed the most appropriate we could place on his Memorial Page.

Perhaps Love
Written & Recorded by John Denver

Perhaps love is like a resting place,
A shelter from the storm.
It exists to give you comfort,
It is there to keep you warm.
And in those times of trouble
When you are most alone.
The memory of love will bring you home.

Perhaps love is like a window,
Perhaps an open door.
It invites you to come closer,
It wants to show you more.
And even if you lose yourself
and don't know what to do,
The memory of love will see you thru.

O love to some is like a cloud,
To some as strong as steel.
For some a way of living,
For some a way to feel.
And some say love is holding on,
And some say letting go.
And some say love is everything,
Some say they don't know

Perhaps love is like the ocean
Full of conflict, full of change.
Like a fire when it's cold outside
Or thunder when it rains.
If I should live forever
And all my dreams come true,
My memories of love will be of you.