In loving memory of
Petunia
May 2011-June 22 2025

Remembering and honoring a very special soul: our sweet Petunia, affectionately known as Miss Pretty Pretty.

Petunia came into our lives in the summer of 2011, just as school was letting out and life felt full of possibility. She and her sister Lee Ann were born that spring, and Petunia was my son’s first cat — a bond that would become deep and lasting. She got to watch her Daddy grow from a boy, to a man, to a Marine.

I was overjoyed to finally be in a place where we could have pets. Welcoming her into our family felt like the beginning of something whole and peaceful.

From the start, Petunia had a quiet magic about her. For her first year +, she didn’t meow — she meeped. A tiny, gentle sound from a tiny, gentle heart. She didn’t play with her claws out, always so careful and sweet, as if she knew our skin was something sacred to her.

She wasn’t a lap cat, but she was always close by — laying next to us, watching us with those big, beautiful green eyes. Sometimes she’d just sit there, quietly staring at us for the longest time, like she was trying to memorize us the way we were trying to memorize her.

Her black-and-white tuxedo coat gave her the look of quiet elegance — always dressed for an occasion. And yet, her love was loudest in the little things: in the way she’d paw insistently at her daddy’s bedroom door, making it rattle like a drumroll until someone noticed. Often it was me or his sister who’d hear it, and I’d send the familiar text: “Let your baby in your room!” Because all she wanted was to be with him.

She loved her people so deeply. She was a quiet presence, but never a distant one.

There’s a quiet in the house now that feels different. Her little meeps, her steps, her steady eyes — all missed more than words can say. I’ll miss the way she made space beside us without needing to take any; how she simply was with us, and that was enough.

Thank you, Petunia, for all the gentle love. For every moment of peace and joy you brought into our home. You were our Miss Pretty Pretty, and you always will be. Sleep well, sweet girl. You were — and are — so loved.

⸻

Poem: “A Cat’s Love” by an unknown author

You came into our lives one day,
So small and sweet and shy.
You left your pawprints on our hearts,
As the days and years went by.

Your purr was like a lullaby,
Your eyes a steady light.
You never asked for very much,
Just love, and time, and night.

Now in some quiet corner,
Of heaven soft and wide,
You curl up in the sunshine,
And wait for us, with pride.

And though our arms are empty,
Our hearts are full of you —
A cat so gently woven in
The soul of all we do.

⸻