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Sebastian I was outside roasting a chicken on the grill, when a young kitten sauntered
up on the lawn. I went to shoo him away, as there were baby birds in one of my
bushes, and I feared for their safety. I loomed over the brown-gray tabby and
white cat and he flopped upside down, stretched, and rumbled the loudest purr on
the planet. I fed him roasted chicken.
The next day when I returned from work, the kitten was nowhere in sight. I went inside to let my dogs into the backyard, and then went back out front for one more look. He was waiting for me on the front porch. I sat on the step, he immediately climbed into my lap, curled up, and started that broken-muffler purring. This scenario played out every day for a week. It took me that long to agree with him, but Sebastian had already chosen me. He was home. I took him to my veterinarian’s. Turns out he wasn’t a kitten at all — he was malnourished. He was a scrawny thing, full of mites and fleas, his little ribs poking out. The vets guessed he was about 1 ½ years old. We patched him up and I brought him home for good. My beloved three-legged Labrador, Cody, bounded up to Sebastian and gave him a slurpy kiss right on his head. Sebastian hissed, but didn’t attack. This went on every day for months. Every day Cody would kiss him hello, and Sebastian would hiss at him. Cody’s Labrador optimism eventually won the cat over, and Sebastian would often groom Cody’s ears. He grew to be an expert at teaching puppies good manners. My friends would often bring their new puppies to the house for lessons. When the puppy would get too rambunctious for his taste, Sebastian would rear up and box the pup’s ears in a lightning litany. He never used his claws. The pup, dazed, quickly learned respect for kitty cats. Sebastian would look very smug, the pleased professor.
Knowing his affection for people, I tested Sebastian for the Delta Society Pet Partner program. He passed on his first try, and it was truly his calling for many years. So many memories …
He saw me through so many changes in my life, his purr a constant. He slept with me … rather, he let me sleep in his bed. Knowing I was afraid of thunderstorms, he’d always cuddle closer, his purr drowning out all but the loudest thunder. I wrote most of my dog training books and articles with him in my lap. When Sebastian was 13, I felt a small pea-sized lump in between his shoulder blades. The vet diagnosed it as a vaccine-induced fibrosarcoma and immediately performed drastic surgery, saving his life. These tumors are nasty things, often growing back and often fatal. His never returned. At age 15, he was diagnosed with small cell intestinal lymphoma. We began a rollercoaster of treatments, rallies and crashes … but so many more good days than bad. Cancer is an evil villain, but Sebastian was a hero through it all. At two years and two months after diagnosis, he started crashing again. I was traveling, and got the news he was failing rapidly. Tests did not show the return of the cancer. We could not find an infection or anything else really wrong. I think his body was just … done. He had definitely gone through all nine lives, and I think he was looking to steal a few more. He tried to stay with me forever, but his body couldn’t match his heart. It was time to let him go, as much as it broke my heart. He crossed the Rainbow Bridge in June 2010. He was almost 18.
The Rainbow Bridge (Author Unknown) There is a bridge connecting Heaven and Earth. It is called the “Rainbow Bridge” because of its many colors. Just this side of the Rainbow Bridge there is a land of meadows, hills and valleys with lush, green grass.
When a beloved pet dies, the pet goes to this place. There is always food, water and
warm spring weather. The old and frail are young again. Those who are maimed,
are made whole again. They play all day with each other. There is only one thing missing. They are not with their special person who loved them on Earth. So, each day they run and play until the day comes when one suddenly stops playing and looks up. The nose twitches! The ears are up! The eyes are staring and this one suddenly will run from the group! You have been seen, and when you and your special friend meet, you take him or her in your arms and embrace. Your face is kissed again and again, and you look once more into the eyes of your trusting friend! Then you cross the Rainbow Bridge together, never again to be separated. |
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Contact: 803-356-9170 or PawsitiveResults@sc.rr.com Copyright ©2012
Pawsitive Results, L.L.C.
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As
Sebastian settled in, it was clear all he wanted was a lap to curl up in. He
loved people. He adored my friends’ babies, even crawling into their strollers
to snuggle closer. Once when I had guests staying with me, their young daughter
acted up and her father sternly sent her to the guest room to go to bed. Her
sobs echoed through the house, “I HATE you! No one LOVES me!” until she finally
fell silent. Thinking she had cried herself to sleep, her dad went to check and
came back laughing. He had found her burrowing into Sebastian, who had jumped
into bed with her, purring away her tears. 
Sebastian
was a mellow soul. I took him to our statewide Assistive Technology Expo and he
would curl up in his kitty bed at our therapy group’s booth. Hundreds of people
came by and puzzled, “Is that a real cat?” He would swivel his head slowly in
their direction, target them with golden eyes, and start that purring. They all
melted, and showered him with affection. He finally had a forum to reach his
public. He touched so many lives. The Delta Society recognized him (and Cody)
with its National Therapy Team of the Year award. 
Sebastian
was a once-in-a-lifetime cat, and he took a big part of me with him when he
left. I don’t think I will ever rest as soundly without him purring me to sleep.
He was a patient teacher, occasionally mischievous, always an old soul. I am so,
so grateful and honored that he chose me. I know he’s sitting in the laps of
angels now … healthy, whole, purring.