These days, humor and laughter are difficult for me to come by. I can recall many times when Jenny and I would literally begin to cry we laughed so hard, but now I don't find many things nearly as funny or silly as before. Sure, my kid does a lot of funny things and I think that Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert are funny - I watch them almost daily, and usually manage to laugh. I don't think I've laughed at a SNL skit in several years, but I don't think that has anything to do with me - that show hasn't been funny in a long time. I can count on one show, The Office, to bring about a full fledged belly laugh every time I watch it. That's the way it used to be with Jenny and me, every day.
Something happened a few weeks ago, that at first wasn't funny at all, but now I can't stop laughing about it.
We have a cat named Murphy. He turned 20 years old in April of this year. That's pretty old for a cat, so we cut him a lot of slack - I mean, that's like 120 in people years. Jenny got him as a kitten and has been a fixture in our house ever since I first met Jenny. We have pictures (somewhere) of Murphy sleeping with Mason when she was just a baby.
About three weeks ago, Murphy died. I'm not sure if you've ever seen an animal die, let me tell you - it's not an enjoyable experience. He did all of the graphic things you can imagine, he fell over, soiled himself, closed his eyes and gave his final gasp. Mason and I tried to comfort him. Mason rubbed his head and talked to him very softly until he breathed his last breath. It was very emotional, Mason and I both cried as we held each other for several minutes.
Because it was time to leave for summer school, I took Murphy to the basement (where Daisy won't go) and put him in a towel and placed him in an old shoebox with the intention of dealing with his body when I got home. We went about our day, Mason off to summer school, me to the office.
Later in the evening, just before bedtime, Mason hollered at me from the kitchen, "Papa!"
"Papa, Murhpy is alive!" I ran to the kitchen to find Mason holding a living, breathing; gray, tabby cat - it was Murphy.
I don't know how, or why. But he is still with us. He can't see farther than about 6 inches in front of him. He walks into walls and can barely manage to jump up on the couch, but he is still with us, meowing loudly when he's hungry. I think Jenny must be getting a kick out of this. For now, we'll just continue to enjoy each day he spends with us, because it surely is on borrowed time.
3 comments:
Come on Max you know how many lives cats have! Remember Muffin? Vern and Linda's Siamese cat? I think that it is still living somewhere. :) I laughed out loud when I read about Murphy. Very Very Funny!
Max, I had to read this story twice. WOW!
Thanks for the story. When we talked yesterday and you told me about Murphy I told you it was the funniest thing I had heard in a long time and I am glad you published the story.
Love you, Mom
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