In loving memory of Lukah (2017 – 2019)

"How did she pass?" lukah was an indoor/outdoor cat. my parents hated having animals inside but i always wanted a pet inside since i was little. she would stay inside some nights. one day, i was playing with my friends when my dad called me from the garage and yelled at me to hurry and come over because something was wrong with her. she was panting and breathing heavily and was sprawled out on the concrete sidewalk of our driveway. i started crying immediately. where we live, it gets extremely hot during the summer. i assume she had gotten heatstroke or gotten into something bad for her. we took her inside immediately and i did everything i could to try and help her. i stayed beside her the entire night until i fell asleep sitting up next to her. before i slept, my mother and father had told me it was too late, and they refused to take her to the vet because "animals were too expensive to care for anyways." her condition worsened and she passed the same night. my parents never woke me up to see her get buried. i was so angry with them and i still am for them giving up on her and letting her suffer. we never knew what happened to her, but nowadays, during the rain or cold or heat, i always bring in my current cat inside (he is also an indoor outdoor cat for the same reason as her) because i am afraid he'll meet the same fate as her.

✎ What was the very first moment you saw them? her brother and her were the only surviving kittens of a litter we had found in an abandoned house next to ours. we found them during a rainstorm and fostered them. her brother naturally passed this year from old age.

✎ What was their favourite spot in the house? her favorite spot in the world was my bed. she used to sleep with me every single night and she would wake me up for school every day by pawing at my face. i still remember the day she got fleas and i had to wash everything in my room.