SmileySnoutWhiskers was seventeen years old when the vet first mentioned his kidneys were slowing down, and eighteen when we said goodbye. Almost two decades is a strange amount of time to share with an animal â long enough that I don't fully remember life before him.
The quiet parts
Nobody warns you about the small routines that disappear: the specific sound of a food bowl at 6am, the spot on the couch that stays empty. Writing this down is, honestly, part of how I'm getting through it.