Fellow animal lovers, I have read your posts and wept for and with you. we all seem to be going through such unspeakable agony. I also can't seem to stop crying at the moment and I feel like my heart is breaking in two from the pain. I lost my kittycat four nights ago on 06 June 05 and I am wracked with guilt and horror about her last minutes at the vet's and wracked with guilt about all the things I did and didn't do in the last year of her life. I just want the time bag. I want my cat back! I want to tell her I love her just one last time. The only thing that could possibly help me now is to know -and believe- that she IS in heaven and that I WILL see her again. Do any of you know this for sure? The problem is that my own faith and belief are so shaky that since my father died five years ago I haven't been sure what I think regarding the afterlife. But this pain is so big and the loss so much, I can't eat, I can't sleep, I just want to have my sweet fat little Ryd with me (yes, I know it's a curious name; I didn't name her, but she was a complete honeybun). So please, please, if any of you have compelling evidence to support the thing that everyone is telling me, that being that she is in heaven or at the Rainbow Bridge, and that I WILL seee her again, please tell me. The other cat in the house (it isn't my cat; it's a neighbour's but he's always hanging out here) seems very distressed by her loss, too, and keeps lying on her grave. Does he know something I don't know, or can he see something I can't see? Or am I just clutching at straws? Help me! I feel like I'm breaking in two. Thanks.

No one can truly prove that Heaven exists. You have to believe as I do that it really does exist and you will see your father and cat once again. The only true evidence is in the Book of Revelation, but not everyone believes the Bible is true. I hope this loss does not shake you fully from your faith but make it stronger. I too have lost a number of pets. The only way I got over the loss was telling myself that they are in a better place. Your cat is in a better place, Brigid. She is running and playing with other cats, and she is no longer suffering. I hope my words have helped, and I will keep you in my prayers.

I'll tell you what. I'm not a religious person - and I don't necessarily believe that heaven is what we think it is. But I do believe in something.

I believe that a soul lives forever. I believe that energy exists forever. I believe that love is something that echoes through the world around us and never disappears.

Why? Because. No other reason. It's not logical - but then neither is life.

Brigid, I'm so sorry for the loss of your Ryd. She was such a beautiful girl with such lovely markings. I'm sure you miss her very very much, I lost my Kitty 6 months ago now, and I know these early days are so very difficult. I don't know if you've read the Rainbow Bridge poem yet Brigid. It helped me so much to visualise my Ellie as being there.

There were 2 threads back in April about whether animals have souls and whether or not they go to heaven.

Here they are: I don't know if the links will work, if not I hope you can find them, they are on page 3 (at the moment.)

“The Pope said they have souls.” Posted by Margo. Last post April 8th 05.

http://lightning-strike.com/forum/index.ph...t=ST&f=4&t=1426

“Our Pets have got to go to Heaven, They Have Souls too.”
Posted by Margo. Last post April 14th 05

http://lightning-strike.com/forum/index.ph...t=ST&f=4&t=1318

I'll try to put part of one of them as a Quote if I can manage it.

[QUOTE]Pope John Paul II taught love for animals more than any other pope in recent memory.
Interesting thoughts on animals from the late Pope John Paul:

In 1990, His Holiness proclaimed that “the animals possess a soul and men must love and feel solidarity with our smaller brethren.” He went on to say that all animals are “fruit of the creative action of the Holy Spirit and merit respect” and that they are “as near to God as men are.” Animal lovers everywhere were overjoyed!

The Holy Father reminded people that all living beings, including animals, came into being because of the “breath” of God. Animals possess the divine spark of life—the living quality that is the soul—and they are not inferior beings, as factory farmers, fur farmers, and others who exploit animals for profit would have us believe.

After he became Pope John Paul II, His Holiness went to Assisi, the birthplace of St. Francis, and spoke of the saint’s love for animals. He declared, “We, too, are called to a similar attitude.”

I hope in some small way these two threads might bring you some comfort

I'll be thinking of you Brigid.
Bless your sweet Ryd

with love
jilly

I am so sorry for your loss ~ it breaks my heart when another is taken from us ~ yet there are things greater than we and the spiritual experience that allows us to interact with the soul ~ to begin this I try to see with my soul and spirit leading the way instead of my human made brain ~ These are some things that lead toward the very personal journey that never ends but perhaps forms a gateway to allow understanding of this concept of the infinite ~

Find a place of peace ~ A Comfortable blanket or favorite spot to sit/recline or stand ~ Light a candle or fire ~ Close your eyes and feel the presence of that which is greater ~ Breathe deeply of His truth ~ Then Be Still and Quiet the incessant ramblings of the concious mind ~ Begin to let in that which has no beginning or end ... You can play sounds of nature CD or actually be outside or have the quiet- what ever you feel is right ~ keep spiritually open ~ (I like to think of the quiet as an infinite blue cloud that surrounds me) ~ Listen to the Quiet Non Verbal Message that comes to you ~ listen and be still ~ take as long or as short a time ~ when ready to stop gradually bring yourself back to the physical human place take three deep breaths ~ say Amen - or Shalom ~ or Peace ~ or whatever you would like ~

This type of activity helps me to find spiritual truths (such as understanding my Amber as she is now )~ and also to help me remember what is is that the infinite means ~ we all knew these things as newborn infants and this is the mindset we need to embrace if we are to return to that place of unconditional love and truth ~

I think that you will find your own answers in your own time ~ it also absolutely helps to utilize other sources to assist you on your way as Jilly pointed out ~

It is about unconditional love so much more powerful than anyone could imagine ~ May you find your way ~May you be Blessed and May you be held in the hollow of His hand ~

Sincerely, Kathryn

Oh how i feel for you. I too lost a pet on June 6th, and then as if things couldn't get any worse i lost another on June 7th. I too feel like my heart is breaking. You say you can't eat or sleep. You must start to eat, i think when our bodies are weak our emotions are worse. Last night all i could think about was there last minutes here, but i'm trying to remember all the beautiful times i had with them all the years before that. I don't have any proof (nobody does) that our animals will go to Heaven, but i truly believe that they do. We loved them so much down here, that the love must continue when where together again. Animals are living things with hearts and souls and when they die there souls are reunited with our souls. Please know that there are people who are going through the same thing you are, and we all have so many questions, but it helps to talk about it. Your Furbaby Ryd is playing at Rainbow Bridge with all of our babies.

There are a couple of websites that recount people's near death experiences. Several people recall being reunited with their pets while they were near death or clinically dead. I don't know if scientists accept the idea of these experiences, but the people describing them seem sincere. I did like reading about their experiences with their deceaed pets.

Hi Margo, Katherine, DJ, Janet, Jilly, Eveningstarz_41
Thank you all so much for your sweet, kind, comforting words, which are doing much to soothe my very raw nerves at the moment. There have been times in the past four days when I think I'm going mad. I keep finding strands of her fur and picking them up and keeping them in one place. I wonder if in my trauma I think that if I pick up enough of her fur I will be able to make her a whole cat again. To make matters worse, my housemate with whom I owned the cat told me tonight that I am 'wallowing in this' and that I need to face some harsh realities and that he wishes I would just stop 'going on and on about it'. It's only day four! I felt like I'd been hit in the face, (which is exactly what I wanted to do to him!) Instead I just burst into tears again. I am so glad to know that there are kind, compassionate, empathetic people like you out there, because the world seems lonely enough as it is without my sweet, fat torty-cat.
I have been scouring websites for answers (am I alone in this, I wonder?) and to my great distress found a Christian website which said that animals do not have souls and therefore do not go to heaven. I felt bereft at reading this and was so relived to come back onto LS and read your words.
Janet, I so share in your recent losses, too,and my heart goes out to you, it truly does. And Kathryn, I tried what you suggested today. It was difficult, but I perservered and though it was very fleeting, I felt the first breath of peace in days. Jilly and Margo, as a Catholic I found very great comfort in your words (I didn't know the Pope had said that. I am SO relieved), and DJ I think I really like the infallible science of the idea that all matter is energy and all energy is eternal and cannot be destroyed. You guys are a great help, so thank you. I am geographically far from you, but I so fervently hope that all our furbabies are together where geography is irrelevant and having a grand old time in health and happiness. I keep (selfishly) asking God to give me a sign, but I guess that's what faith is all about. In this respect I am weak, but in these past few days I am trying my very best. Anyway, I just wanted to say thank-you. I will obviously track this posting (and the others, which I am reading with great interest) and my thoughts and prayers are with you all, too, as I know we all share a bond of happy memories of our loved ones and terrible sadness at their loss.
B

A good friend sent this to me as I was being faced with putting my dog down... it's been a week and half since he died and all that gets me through is believing that I will see him again. It's long but I hope it helps.


Excerpted from the book 'Resurrection' by Hank Hanegraaff... (Chapter 13-Will God Raise Pets... from the Dead?)

"I know every bird in the mountains, & the creatures of the field are Mine. ((Psalm 50:11))

"Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, & Your dominion endures through all generations. The Lord is faithful to all His promises & loving toward all He has made." ((Psalm 145:13))

Talk about a question that stirs up emotion! Joni Erikson Tada found out firsthand when she suggested that pets would not be resurrected from the dead...As a result, Joni took a closer look at such Scripture passages as Ecclesiastes 3:21 (("Who knows if the spirit of man rises upward & if the spirit of the animal goes down to the earth?" )) After sinking deeply into the words of Scripture, she wrote, 'If God brings back our pets to life, it wouldn't surprise me. It would be just like Him. It would be totally in keeping with His character...Exorbitant. Excessive. Extravagant in grace after grace. Of all the dazzling discoveries & ecstatic pleasures heaven will hold for us, the potential of seeing Scrappy would be pure whimsy -- utterly, joyfully, surprisingly superfluous. It's not that... God owes Scrappy anything, but that heaven is going to be a place that will refract & reflect in as many ways as possible the goodness & joy of our great God, who delights in lavishing love on His children....'

Is Joni barking up the wrong tree, or is she right? As usual, I'd say she is right on. Scripture does not conclusively tell us whether our pets will make it to heaven. However, the Bible does provide us with some significant clues regarding whether animals will inhabit the new heaven & the new earth.

First, the Garden of Eden was populated by animals, so there is precedent for believing that Eden restored will be populated by animals also. Joni has well said, "animals are some of God's best & most avant-garde ideas." Thus, it would seem incredible that God would eliminate some of His most creative creations.

Furthermore, the Scriptures from first to last suggest that animals have souls. Both Moses in Genesis & John in Revelation communicate that the Creator endowed animals with souls(see Genesis 1:20, 24: Revelation 8:9).... It wasn't until the advent of 17th century 'enlightenment'...that the existence of animal souls was even questioned in Western civilization. 'Throughout the history of the Church, the classic understanding of living things has included the doctrine that animals, as well as humans, have souls.'

Finally, while we cannot say for certain that the pets we enjoy today will be 'resurrected' in eternity, I, like Joni, am not willing to rule out the possibility. Some of the keenest thinkers from C.S. Lewis to Peter Kreeft are not only convinced that animals in general but that pets in particular will be restored in the resurrection. Lewis, for one, argues that pets "may have an immortality, not in themselves, but in the immortality of their masters." As Lewis explains, "very few animals indeed, in their wild state, attain to a 'self' or 'ego'. But if any do, & if it is agreeable to the goodness of God that they should live again, their immortality would also be related to man...

Like Lewis, Dr Peter Kreeft is convinced that animals will exist throughout eternity. "Are there animals in Heaven? The simplest answer is: Why not? How irrational is the prejudice that would allow plants(green fields & flowers) but not animals into Heaven!...Animals belong in the 'new earth' as much as trees." Regarding pets, Kreeft writes,"Would the same animals be in Heaven as on earth? Is my dead cat in Heaven? Again, why not? God can raise up the very grass; why not cats? Though the blessed have better things to do than play with pets, the better does not rule out the lesser. We were meant from the beginning to have stewardship over the animals; we have not fulfilled that Divine plan yet here on earth; therefore it seems likely that the right relationship with animals will be part of Heaven: proper 'petship.' And what better place to begin than with already petted pets?"

In the final &%^ysis, one thing is certain. Scripture provides us with a sufficient precedent for suggesting that animals will continue to exist after the return of our Lord. Isaiah provides a particularly stirring image:

The wolf will live with the lamb,
the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf & the lion & the yearling together;
and a little child will lead them.
The cow will feed with the bear,
their young will lie down together,
and the lion will eat straw like the ox.
The infant will play near the hole of the cobra,
and the young child put his hand into the viper's nest.
They will neither harm nor destroy
on all My holy mountain,
for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord,
in the same ways that the waters cover the sea.
((Isaiah 11:6-9))

This topic has come up so many times. It's obviously something a lot of folks think about.

I posted this quote in another thread here but I can't seem to find it now. On the topic of pets having souls, that's been pretty well covered already. All you gotta do is look into their eyes and you can see it for yourself. On the existence of a God, and by extension Heaven, here's what convinced me more than any Church sermon ever did....

Einstein said: "My religion consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind."

If, in my humble opinion, the smartest and most intuitive man to live in modern times recognises the existence of an "illimitable superior spirit", then I, with my even more "feeble" mind, am not in any position to dispute it.

Tim

Brigid,

Before I get started, I just wanted to share that I did the same thing after Punky died. I really wanted to find a special locket to keep a piece of his hair which I would wear close to my heart 24/7 (but I never found the right locket). To find his hair, I searched the house, his brush, clippers, and even outside in the dirt where I would shake out the bathroom rug after grooming him (and I found some!). I did cut a section of his long black and white tail hair after he died (I could do no such a thing while he still lived). I cried my eyes out as I was doing it, because it felt so selfish and disrespectful, but now I'm glad I have that long, fluffy memento of him...one of his dozens of nicknames was "wag wag"..He was the world to me. And now, every time he crosses my mind, I'm in danger of crying in less than five seconds ...doesn't matter where I am...grocery store, board meeting, on the phone...

Anyway, "Do our pets go to Heaven" is a topic I also desperately wanted to discuss after Punky died. I challenged the notion of "Rainbow Bridge". It actually made me angry that this euphemism was good enough for most people, because I wanted to know the truth! I wanted Substance!! I've come to accept that, short of some kind of convincing visitation or near-death experience, I'll not know if animals go to Heaven, or if I go to Heaven, or if there is even a Heaven. Oh how happy and enlightened I would be if I could come near death and see into some of the secrets of the other side!!! It would alter my whole life from that day till my last. I would merely need to see that Punky was there, and tell him that I'll be back!! Then I would pursue life with one-hundred-fold purpose and vigor!! Just to know that he is there and I will be going there one day. Since the moment he died, I try to live my life to increase my chances that I get to Heaven, if there is one, mainly so I can be with him again. I admit its a disingenuous reason to try to get to Heaven, but I figure it's no less an honorable reason than trying to get there out of simple fear of the alternative. I think Faith is something people develop to help them cope with the uncopeable (is that a word? hehe). That's pretty much all we have. Tangible evidence may never be found. I think I prefer the word HOPE. Personally, I sense GOD in nature, not church, organised religion or even the Bible (and I feel that the way mankind is greedily destroying nature is an abomination). I HOPE I have stumbled upon a universal truth. I think if animals go to heaven, then ALL animals go to heaven, not just the "wanted" domesticated ones. Because my respect for nature is so high, I believe all creatures have a right to exist apart from us, and humans are not the measure of all things good. Animals and plants, wild and domestic, have their own life interests apart from us, even if we do not understand them, and a right to be in heaven on their own merits. The wild cheetah that was killed by lions will go to heaven the same as the small mixed-breed black and white dog who died of cancer, if any of them go to heaven at all. I swear if they are simply no more after their deaths, than so are we. If you wish to look at it from a human-centric perspective, then I offer what my mom told me when I was growing up, and reminded me of when Punky died: In Heaven, God gives us the things that make us most happy. If our pets made us happy, then of course they will be there!

This subject has been intensely on my mind since I lost my precious Jasmine kitty on May 23. She died in a terrible accident so unexpectedly. This web site has been a godsend because for 18 days I've been in deep grief and I am fully aware that people think I'm crazy. Coming here I've found that I'm really not crazy, I just really, really loved my "little girl" and I miss her so much. Thank you everyone for all of your comforting words of wisdom. I am convinced that whatever form heaven takes, that I will see my jaz again. For if our Father God loves us as we love our pets (or even more?) then I know He will raise them up with us.

Beth

To Punky's mum: I was so relieved to read your post. I really thought I was going mad and have even resorted to collecting strands of her on the sly becasue my housemate thinks I am insane, and I, too, cut a small piece of Ryd's fur from her before we buried her. I apologised to her, too, because she was always such a dignified girlie and always so well groomed; she would have hated to be tatty or in any way inelegant so I tried to be very discreet.
I also challenged the Rainbow Bridge notion because at first I found it too convenient, but I am now at a place where I figure you are exactly right: if the afterlife is a place where we would want to be for eternity, then it has in it the things that make us happy and for me that's my furry ones. In fact, if heaven doesn't have my Whiskey (passed on 15 years ago) and my RyddleyPid, then I ain't going!
On Monday night, when I was forced so suddenly to think about all these things, I also came to a place where I now believe in the complete elligibility of ALL living souls to go on to the eternal and made the instant and irrevocable decision to become vegetarian because of this. I really don't care what people think of this decision, but for my part, if I want Ryd to be with me in the afterlife and feel that she has a right as much as I do to be there, then I really cannot deny other animals their inaliable right as well.
I would still selfishly love some proof, though, just to help me through this pain. I even found an obscure website that has pictures of what are apparently 'ghost' animals manifesting in photographs. I have no idea if they were fake or not, but at this very point in time it gives me a tiny modi%% of comfort.
Beth, your little Jasmine is a beatiful girlie. I am sure you miss her just dreadfully and I am so sorry she passed over the way that she did, but I think that whatever way our little furry friends go, the shock and hurt and loss are felt in equal measure. No, you are not crazy and you are not alone. My thoughts are with you and Jas.
Love to you all and thanks again for helping me through this.
B

Brigid, As far as a sign goes ... it may not be exactly what you are expecting.

If it comes it will be something a little bit untoward, something a little bit unusual. Generally connected with nature.
Like a rose blooming in mid-December.
A particularly bright shooting star.
A turtledove or a bird that has particular meaning for you landing close to you or hovering above you or doing something a little bit unusual.

These are the sort of signs that I have seen spoken of by other members. If it comes it will be signicant to YOU and perhaps not to others. Be watchful and open and I hope so much that your precious Ryd will be able to send you the sign that you are looking for.

with love
jilly

It is shocking to me that a christian website would make such a claim about animals having no souls. They must be illiterate, because if they were able to read the Bible, they would find an abundance of scripture in Isaiah,and in Genesis, that outright states God gave animals souls (Genesis), and makes it very clear that they would no doubt be in heaven (Isaiah).
I think 'rainbow bridge" is just a name people like to use to desribe a beautiful place. I can only speak for myself when I say that I don't think my Sasha is perched at the edge of a rainbow waiting for me as we speak, but I do believe that she is in heaven, which is far more beautiful than our imagination is capable of seeing, and will be there to greet me when I it's my time. I just call that place where she will come to meet me the "rainbow bridge" as a reference name and nothing more.
Love,
Kim

Thanks Jilly and Kim,
Jilly: I will keep an eye out for these signs and I sure hope it doesn't make a difference where I am geographically because as I say, I will be leaving here in 11 days and I am distraught at the idea of being so far away from her 'physically'.
And Kim, I think I am in agreement with you ref your thoughts about the famed Rainbow Bridge and I, too , look forward to seeing all my little furry ones on the other side.
No, I may be grasping at very fragile straws here, but I was looking through some digital photos that I took last week, literally days before Ryddley passed over and saw a bright red 'halo' right above Ryd in one of the pictures. I remember somebody once telling me that the souls of the departed sometimes show up in photos as rings of light and I hope that what I saw was an angel or even my Dad hovering near my little Ryddley, waiting to accompany her. Of course, it could be one of the vagaries of digital photography, I know that, but wouldn't it be great if the other were true? None of us knows for sure, but I sure am impatient to find out.
Today a week ago was the last full day that Ryddley had on earth and these 'markers' are real killers, aren't they?
Love to you all
B
x

I also can't believe a Christian site would say that animals won't be on the other side. As was stated by Kim, there are loads of references of animals in Heaven in the bible. Not to mention, why would a God that loves us as much as He does keep us seperated from the things we loved so dearly here on earth for all eternity? He gave us the bond with our pets and I truly believe it goes on forever. My faith is rather shaky, always has been, and since losing Freeway it has become a minute to minute battle... But somewhere inside me I know that even though I can't pet my boy anymore, the hand of God does. I feel him with me... How could something that loves so so much, so unconditionally, not have a soul? It truly baffles me how people can believe that they don't.
Bridgid, yes the 'marker days' are the worst. It was 2 weeks ago today that Freeway had his last day... and I left him for the whole entire day... He wasn't alone, but I wasn't here. Not sure I'll ever forgive myself for leaving him like that.
Hugs to all...

Brigid, I have heard the same thing about the rings of light signifying a departed soul. I would be interested in seeing that picture if there is any way you can post it.

Hi Margo
Here it is. I have worked a lot with images but I can offer no technical reason as to why this swirl of light should appear in this photograph. I would appreciate other's opinions. This was taken just days before Ryddley crossed over. I am obviously hoping like mad that it's a sign of some sort, but I guess I'll not really know.
By the way, that's Bertie lying there near her. Bertie is a neighbour's cat, but for some reason Ryd was very tolerant of him and I even found them touching noses on occasion. When she was ill in her last days, he lay near her a lot (and I am now ashamed that I let him hog the couch on Ryd's last Sunday when I think she wanted to snooze there on her own with me). The night she died (exactly a week ago tonight to my huge, sad, panicky distress) he came in and sniffed her poor little body for a long time and then cried and cried around the house, and since then he lies on her grave most of the day. He is extra 'howly' we well and seems to be very down.
Anyway, Margo, here is the pic as you asked. I'm interested to know your opinion.
And Jenn, I'm with you regarding all of it: I'll never forgive myself for leaving Ryd at the vet's for the blood tests. She must have thought I abandoned her. I just didn't want to be around all the puppies and the kittens, so full of health, when she was so poorly and I wasn't allowed to be in there with her for the blood tests. She went into respiratory failure shortly after that, and although we were racing up the stairs to be with her at the end, she was already slipping away when we got inside the room. It kills me. And yes, I found more than one website with answers to 'Christian' questions that stated that animals don't go on and I just died reading them. I thought of writing them disparaging email but then decided exactly what you did. If love is the ultimate manifestation of a soul, then that's all I need to know, really. I know I will see my Ryddley again, and my other furries, too. And frankly, the way I feel now, I really can't wait....
Love and hugs to you all.
B
x

Maybe you would find peace in believing in the spirit as opposed to heaven. All creatures have a spirit that lives on after they are gone. I can feel Shandy everywhere I go and thats the truth, its like she is always with me.

Absolutely, bluest. I deeply believe that all entities have a spirit that persists after physical death, even animals. I am learning about Buddhism, and I don't profess to understand it, but I took great solace from a Buddhist's book recently, in which he said that things do not need to exist physically to be real. We can see a dormant tree in winter and imagine it covered with spring flowers - so why do we deny the flowers exist now? The only thing that prevents us from physically experiencing the flowers is time. The flowers are in the tree, waiting to manifest themselves.

So perhaps we should not be so quick to dismiss the idea of animals or people having spirits. If we can recall a memory of them, do they not exist in our minds and hearts? If we think we see or hear or smell them after they are gone, who can say we are wrong? For a fleeting moment our minds and senses perceived their presence. Perhaps we are only separated from them by time or some other dimension we cannot perceive.

My Grandmother-in-law sent me this a few days ago and I would like to share it.

SAFELY HOME
I am home in heaven, dear ones;
Oh, so happy and so bright.
There is perfect joy and beauty
In this everlasting light.

All the pain and grief is over,
Every restless tossing passed.
I am now at peace forever,
Safely home in heaven at last.

Did you wonder I so calmly
Trod the valley of the shade?
Oh, but Jesus' love illumined
Every dark and fearful glade.

And He came Himself to meet me
In the way so hard to tread;
And with Jesus' arm to lean on
Could I have one doubt or dread?

Then you must not grieve so sorely,
For I love you dearly still.
Try to look beyond death's shadows;
Pray to trust our Father's will.

There is work still waiting for you,
So you must not idly stand.
Do it now while life remaineth;
You shall rest in Jesus' land.

When that work is all completed,
He will gently call you home.
Oh, the rapture of that meeting;
Oh, the joy to see you come.
---Author Unknown

That is a thoughtful poem, thanks for posting it.

Hi Brigid...just wanted to say I forgot to say earlier that I think your Ryddley was such a cutie, with such a sweet face. I hope you're hanging in there.

Brigid, thanks for posting that intriguing picture. I don't know enough about photography to know what would cause that light. I can only hope it is something spiritual.

I remember right before I took my cat Ashley to the vet, he got right up beside me and looked at me with such a special, meaningful expression, as I petted him. He was always affectionate but I never saw a look quite like that from him before. I really think he was telling me goodbye, although for some reason I was too blind to realize what was going on at the time. I guess I was in denial. But somehow he seemed to know, better than me, that it was his time. How did he get that knowledge? I hope there is indeed some kind of spiritual element at work, like perhaps with your picture.

Thanks Margo, aepva, bluest1 and mosmommy and thank you, aepva, for your kind words about my Ryddleygirl: I thought she was the most beautiful girlie, although people sometimes thought her torty-fur 'unusual'. I loved her to bits and pieces, and I do still.
Margo, I had exactly the same thing as you: on Ryd's last afternoon (although I didn't know it was at the time), she sat on my lap while I brushed her and gave me such a long, knowing, deep look that I burst into tears. Maybe I had a sense that all was really not well, but I really didn't know we were so close to the end, but I really, truly believe that SHE did. Now I would give anything to have all that time back and I am so glad that I have that moment to cherish, because the hours after that were absolute hell.
I should also tell you that since I uploaded those photos, I saw the read 'streak' in another picture (taken while she was still with me) and a single orb in two other photos (taken at her grave since she crossed over, and I took the photos because both of the neighbour's cats insist on sitting/lying on her grave; I took the pics to show my sister that the cats are sitting and lying on her grave and this single 'orb' has showed up in two of the pictures) I have no idea what they are, and cynics and scientists will doubtless tell me that they are just a photographic blip, (fair enough if that's so) but I remember watching a John Edward show once in which he said that the souls of the departed can show up as orbs or flashes of light in photographs. I have no idea and I guess the only time I'll really know for sure is when I cross over,too. And that, by the way, is something I am no longer afraid of at all.
Love to you all
B
x