Grateful Words for Wednesday – A Special Thank You From Mr.Jazz
Hey Everyone! It’s me, Mr. Jazz from the Bridge, and I just wanted to take a minute to thank all of you for the overwhelming outpouring of support, love, and compassion you have given me and my fellow feline and human family since my passing last week. I am so touched by your kindness and mere words could not possibly express the gratitude I feel for the beautiful comments you left on our blog and other outlets to express your condolences.
I know my human Mom is not doing so well since she posted my tribute a couple days ago. She tries to put up a brave front, but she sees me everywhere in her mind and throughout the house. When she put away the laundry, it reminded her of the clothes she was wearing in her final moments with me. When she did the vacuuming, she saw me resting on so many places on the floor. She feeds the other cats dinner and my bowl remains empty. I am everywhere she looks and she can’t stop thinking about me.
I want to tell her that I am okay and I know she loved me very much and gave me the most wonderful and loving life possible. I have no regrets – I lived a long and full life, with each and every day filled with good food, clean litter, a warm lap to nap on, and so many loving caresses and tender words from her. She needs to know that I understand it was her deep love of me that is what gave her the strength and courage to let me go. I am not mad at her, quite the opposite, I am so proud of her for putting my needs and comfort ahead of hers.
And now here I am, surrounded by so many amazing kitties and doggies, including my old fur family members that I shared a home with, Kit, Shami, Whitney, Bandit, Bailey, Meadow, and Hobo. Everyone, old friends and new, have welcomed me with open paws and have made me feel young again. I am without pain now and we all play and run free and it truly is extraordinary, so please don’t be sad human Mom. I know you miss me and that is okay. I miss you too – I miss human Dad and Harley and Kizmet who were with me to the very end, offering me comforting purrs of support and I miss my buddies, Zee, Zoey, Mia, Peanut, and Rolz.
Look how cute I was! This was me back in 1999 with my fur buddies Kit and Shami. I have already met up with them at the Bridge and we are having so much fun sharing old memories!
I also know you are feeling a rush and conflict of emotions by letting me go – love, relief, anger, guilt, heartache, despair, calm, and everything in between. But truth be told, I was just so, so tired and it was time for me to go. I kept hanging on, but I was already gone, and you knew that deep down in your heart and that is why letting me go was an eternal gift that I will forever be grateful for.
You will forever have me in your memories and you have so many wonderful pictures of me to look at – the human Dad took so many great photos of me and when you are ready to look at them, they will be there. And I know you will still keep me as part of the blog and I will always have a special chapter devoted just to me in the book you wrote in honor of us kitties – I know it makes you cry to look at all of this now, but one day when the pain starts to fade, you will be so glad you have all these visual reminders of me.
Just know that the weight and burden of my dying days has been lifted from me and I am so thankful for all of you who let my human know you understood her pain and heartache in letting me go. So many of you have been in her shoes and she is forever humbled and genuinely grateful for the outpouring of sympathy and support you gave her.
All I ask is that you try to remember that life is finite. Love, treasure, and appreciate what you have in your lives as if it might be your last day. And when you lose a beloved pet like me, don’t be closed minded, afraid to feel love again – open your hearts and homes when the time is right to another pet one day who needs a forever home. I promise it will not dilute the love you had for us, quite the opposite – it will fill our hearts with joy knowing you have given another creature a chance to love you the same way we did.
Blessings to you all and until we meet again, your forever friend, Mr. Jazz
Don’t live your life looking over your shoulder in regret. Embrace and celebrate the now moments in your life and in the spirit of the Zee/Zoey gang – “embrace the ordinary in your life and dare to make it extraordinary. ” Peace out buddy, we love you so much…
This post made me cry all over again. My heart goes out to you, Deb – be gentle with yourself during this difficult time, and know that you have lots of friends who are keeping you, Dan and the kitties in our thoughts and prayers.
Thank you for the purrs, Ingrid, and sorry to make you cry again…
Mr. Jazz you are so wise… and no worries, we’ll all help mom, dad and your fur sibs through this tough time. We know they all miss you so right now, but all your friends can help fill the empties.
Run free Mr. Jazz… purr loud…be happy
Harry, Dexter, Tipp and Willow
Mom Carolyn and Dad Mark
Thank you for the purrs and kindness, Cherry City Kitties…
Lots of kitty hugs to you <3
Thank you Stephanie!
dear Deb Dan and all the family, some how I missed the day of mr Jazzs crossing over and know till I read todays page. He was the most regal beautiful cat I ever saw. I remember the excitement Phyllis and I felt when we found his hiding place after 2 days of looking for him and our joy the next day he graced us by coming out and eating his dinner while we were allowed to watch. It was amazing.please give my little haley a special hug from me for being such a good friend to Mr Jazz. Your in my thoughts and prayers . He will be missed. love Deenie
Deenie – I appreciate your kind words so much and am so grateful you got to meet Jazz. He was such a special boy and I will be sure to give Harley a hug from you…
With tears flowing I have to say this was the most beautiful I have ever read. Mr. Jazz could you please tell ma’s dog Hank that she loves him and misses him everyday. He went to heaven 13 yrs ago. I know it will take a long time for your mom’s heart to heal but it will never heal completely because a small part of it will always have a hole in it that belongs to you.
Carma – sending barks from Hank your way… gotta go now…. still so many more doggies and kitties to visit… and tell your mom we really appreciate her kind comments.
Mr. Jazz, you touched the hearts of the world and I know you are watching over your wonderful family. We will love you forever pal.
Thank you Brian… very kind of you to say!
Oh my, I am sitting here in tears. This was exquisite. Mr.Jazz what a brilliant boy. This part particularly resonated with me “And when you lose a beloved pet like me, don’t be closed minded, afraid to feel love again – open your hearts and homes when the time is right to another pet one day who needs a forever home. I promise it will not dilute the love you had for us, quite the opposite – it will fill our hearts with joy knowing you have given another creature a chance to love you the same way we did. ”
I was told the same thing when I experienced intense guilt after adopting Cody just 2 weeks after my 18 yr old soul kitty (Bobo) had passed. I kept feeling as if I was doing Bobo an injustice. My vet and my friends all told me that Bobo would have wanted me to share my love with another kitty who needed it as much as he did.
Thank you for touching my heart and soul today.
xoxoxo
Caren – I am glad I was able to touch your heart and soul today… Both Cody and Bobo are special in their own wonderful ways and I am glad you opened up your heart to see that…
A lovely post. sniff, sniff.
Thank you Jan.
Beautiful post. When Em was on her end of life journey I made decisions for her that at the time I believed were in her best interest. When she died my soul screamed and all of those choices came flooding back, and forced me to try to second guess all of them. if only I had done this, if only that… it took a lot of power and a lot of reminding from those who loved me that I made decisions for her out of love and so they were the right ones.
Mr. Jazz, you are so very wise with these words:
I want to tell her that I am okay and I know she loved me very much and gave me the most wonderful and loving life possible. I have no regrets – I lived a long and full life, with each and every day filled with good food, clean litter, a warm lap to nap on, and so many loving caresses and tender words from her. She needs to know that I understand it was her deep love of me that is what gave her the strength and courage to let me go. I am not mad at her, quite the opposite, I am so proud of her for putting my needs and comfort ahead of hers.
i am sure when your Mom and Dad stop missing you so keenly they will hit home a little easier and bring them comfort.
*with leaky eyes
Connie… oh yes, I do feel all of your pain and conflict, but you did the right thing and I am grateful you had loving people around you to get through Em’s passing. I appreciate your comments so much, I know this was not easy for you…
to my mom & dad; to harley, kiz, zee, zoe, rolz, mia N peanut: I would also like to say Thanx…for EVERYTHING..I have & will always have; the BEST family in the world…..ever….I have mewed about you non stop over at Boe Boe’s fish N fry; it’s a really neat restaurant we all gather round at N chillax N talk bout how super awesome our friends, and mostly our family is….we never use past tense here because we all know a reunion will take place; someday; and I wanted to also say I love each of you very much….and to mom….you won’t believe this in a million years…..Cousin It has more furs than me~~~~~~~~ XOXOXOXO
Jazz….Dood Jazz….Mr Jazz =^..^=
da tabbies – such a wonderful picture you have painted… we look forward to the reunion and feel the love radiating from Jazz!
A lovely post from Jazz. Purrs to you- headbumps from Gemini
Thank you for the purrs and headbumps, Cheysuli.
This is an exquisitely written tribute post, Deb. In parts, it almost reads like poetry. Your raw emotions have allowed you to create a work of writing art. Later, when you look back on this body of work about Mr. Jazz you will be happy to have these post to re-read. Hugs from me, purrs from Sophie.
Oh my goodness, Beverly. I am ever so humbled by your interpretation of this post. Thank you so much…
Mr Jazz this was such a beautiful post and you have written so eloquently about the feelings of your Mom. We understand that she is sad and finding it hard. She is on a journey. This one is about the sorrow in her heart over losing you. It is never easy for our humans. They love us as we love them, unconditionally and when it’s time to part they aren’t so good at that part. But your Mom gave you the last act of the greatest love, even if in her heart she doesn’t feel it … yet. Our Mom is doing the same soul searching. So we do completely understand. But you keep sending out your sweet reminders to your Mom and help her in her path along this journey.
many hugs
xoxoxoxo
Angel Abby – you are so right about the humans… they just love us kitties so much that it really is so, so hard for them to part with us. All we can do is hope that they will heal in time. We hope your Mom will be okay soon and we thank you for your kind words.
Brought tears. Big hugs purrs to you from our house to yours.
Charlie,Cashew,Garfield,Tubby
Oh… sorry for the tears, Sue! Thank you for the purrs!
The emotions are overwhelming and exhausting. I know….. I feel like I’ve been turned inside out. Letting Simon go last Friday was like letting a piece of my soul go. He was my #1 boy, the cat that turned me into a cat lover, and the catalyst for nearly a decade’s worth of rescue work .
Our situation mirrored yours in so many ways, and in the end, the guilt over not doing more nearly ate me alive. In my heart, though, I think that I’ve known for awhile that I had done all I could and it wouldn’t have been fair to subject Simon to anything further.
While trying to make sense of it all, I read this, and it helped me come to terms with my decisions. Maybe only a little, but at least it’s a start.
“When a course of unhappiness, such as an illness and the ensuing medical treatment, will not be short, and does not hold the promise of our cat regaining their health; it is our responsibility to once again, and for a final time, make our cat happy.”
*BIG HUGS*
This is the page that I took that quote from: http://www.wayofcats.com/blog/how-to-know-when-its-time/3710
You loved Simon enough to let him go, Michelle, and it’s what he wanted you to do. It is never easy to lose such a precious companion – I have more than 30 urns on my shelves reminding me of my losses too. Just remember him with love and carry on with him in your heart. Simon will be waiting to greet you again one day. Hugs.
Michelle – I am so, so sorry to hear of Simon’s passing and he sounds like he was an amazing cat. And while I know you might never make sense of it all, Jazz is very happy to know, even if it is just a little bit, that he was able to ease your pain in some regard.
Blessings to you and thank you for sharing that quote…
Such a beautiful post. Please, please please…one favor: grieve Jazz’s loss in your life – the emptiness in your arms, the hole in your heart, all the things that are and were essentially Jazz in your life – at your own pace and in your own way. And know that we understand and journey alongside you. And please be kind to yourself in the grieving process. Jazz is right, you know: your great love for him was a precious gift that allowed you to set him free.
Thank you Lisa… writing is how I grieve and being able to share and express my feelings through the blog has been very helpful. Difficult… but helpful too. Thank you for your kindness.
Leaky eyes here again – that was a beautiful post. Mr. Jazz, Don’t worry too much about mom, she has a whole family of blog friends who will keep her smiling and give her hugs when needed. I’m so happy you are having a good time up there. Most everyone has reported that same thing when they cross that bridge. M is sending Deb HUGS here too cuz she understand how she feels.
Oh mario… sorry for all the leaky eyes! We are trying not to do that anymore and it truly is wonderful to have a whole family of blogging friends to help get us through this…
Mr. Jazz sent such a beautiful message it made me cry. Each time we lose one of our beloved furry family we grieve tho we know they would not want us to. He had the best possible life with his family, loved and treasured to his last moment on this earth. His presence will never leave as long as he and our departed other live in our hearts and memories … in honor of his memory we must now move on and share our love with other needy ones. It’s what he wants us all to do. Fly free, Mr. Jazz. You will always be loved.
Oh Mary… so well put… time to move on and share our love with other needy ones. Thank you for sharing that sentiment and for your kind words.
That was so beautiful! Thank you for putting into words the feelings of all of us who have loved and lost a beloved pet.
You are so welcome, Rosemary. If this could help in any small way for those that grieve, then Jazz would be very grateful he could help.
This is a beautiful post from Mr Jazz.
The doubts are always the worst. I ask myself if I was too hasty, but in truth I know that like you I had no choice but to help my precious boy to go peacefully to the Bridge. But knowing we have made the right choice doesn’t help soften the pain. Hopefully time will do that for yours and my family and all who have lost our loved ones.
Flynn… I have been through it far too many times and it always hurts. Like you, I hope time will be kind to all who have had to say goodbye to a beloved pet.