The Ephemeric

A sad moment this week as we said goodbye to our beloved cat Didier, at the age of 17. It's taken me a few days to motivate myself to write anything about this, but i'm still going to keep it brief, and then leave you with a bunch of my favourite pictures of this handsome chap.

Didier was born in February 2008, and we adopted him in April at just a few weeks old. Named after Didier Drogba of Chelsea Football Club after we saw his predilection for playing with his toy ball, and his impressive dribbling skills. His other hobbies included patrolling for intruders and watching us cook with keen interest. I think if he had opposable thumbs, he would have been a chef. A little skittish at first, he soon settled in. 

I've heard people comment that he was quite an aloof cat, not necessarily the most outwardly affectionate. A true Debate in that respect. But he showed his affection in other ways, keeping you company, sitting next to you and purring, or jumping on the kitchen counter and shoving the top of his head towards you for a nuzzle. A little presumptuous, perhaps. He would often come up to you, flop on the floor and stretch out his belly expectantly for scratches.

It's odd to think about getting so attached to an animal, but after 17 years he really does become part of the family. He becomes a source of consistency. He's there every year at family gatherings, sitting in his favourite spot, jumping around the furniture, and you begin to just expect he always will be. 

17 years is a long time. 17 years ago, I was still living at home. So many nights of Didier sitting on my desk while I dithered about on the computer, keeping me company. Excitedly greeting me at the door when I got home from Uni. Sometimes too excitedly. We ended up having to get a "Beware of Cat" sign for the benefit of delivery persons.

He was a tough little guy, protecting the garden from foxes and larger cats. He liked trundling about in the snow at winter time, although thought better of it as soon as he felt a few drops of rain.

In later life, he became less energetic, less playful, and spent most of his time sitting with the family and going for the occasional walk in the garden. He still liked a good scratch behind the ears or under the chin.

While it's sad to say goodbye to Didier. He lived a long and happy life and went peacefully, which is about all any of us can hope for.

And with that, let's look at some cute cat pictures.