On the first leg of our journey we had a very moving and heartfelt experience going via military to England! Jim and I ended up, as space available, on a medevac cargo plane hop from Washington D.C. to Germany.  On the medevac was one wounded young soldier who was being, it looked like, transported from a military hospital from Mississippi to his home base in Ramstein, Germany.  It looked like he had a major leg injury.  He was lying on a stretcher intravenously hooked up to tubes. A wonderful nurse was taking care of him throughout the trip. She put a few blankets on him and then she spread over him a beautiful quilt.  I noticed it had a patched sewed on the edged with the embroidered words of "American Hero Quilts"

 Later on during our flight I asked the nurse about the Quilt.  She gave a radiant smile and said that a group in Vashon Island, WA creates these quilts for our service men that have been wounded.  I have to say tears came to my eyes as I saw this young serviceman with this wonderful loving sewn quilt full of Thanks and Love to him for what he is doing for all of us!  That quilt I'm sure was such a comfort for him.

 This scenario I witnessed brought to my mind my cousin Sharon Emmett's wonderful article she wrote for, Seedlings of Change, on how quilts reach out to others in so many ways! 

The photo feels fitting! It is of my husband standing in front of the Vietnam memorial wall in D.C. looking at the names, for the first time,  of so many of his fallen fellow veteran friends.   For more info on the American Hero Quilts you can visit their website www.americanheroquilts.com  

My granddaughter, Maggie, and I were in Safeway one day and saw a posted 8 ½ by 11 picture of "Sweetie,"  in need of a home (all the cat rescues were full), with my personal vet being the doctor the temporary in-house renter had kindly taken her to for medical assistance as Sweetie was flea infested, starving, and very skittish.  This first rescuer had started providing food, water and chin scratching (when permitted to do so by Sweetie), kind soul that she was.  I looked at Maggie and she at me and I said "how can I NOT call, Maggie, she is doomed as it is?" and my animal- loving granddaughter (now age 13 ½) smiled her little smile and said "yes, Grandma, you must call!" 

Sweetie came to live with Jorgee (my rescued 14 year old Jack Russell) and me in August of 2007; according to neighbors, the former tenants had taken her with them when they moved (I wondered--in this economy?) and Sweetie "found her way back home?" I had no intention of getting a cat because I live on a busy street and knew my neighbor had lost two cats to street traffic, but, "best laid plans?"

and Sweetie joined our home, skinny, afraid of everyone and everything, quickly hiding under the bed and in the closet, and only coming out for food and water when no one was looking.  Eventually (it took a while) she started venturing out into the house, not allowing anyone to catch her, and quickly always retreating back under the bed when threatened; she and Jorgee gradually interacted and established a rather "tolerance level" of friendship and Sweetie started sleeping on the bed at night with us as well.  She was one who definitely "bit the hand that fed her," when I petted her too much, when she wanted food or a treat or I did not respond quickly enough to her requested needs, and Jorgee and I found that the new boss of this household was, yes indeed, SWEETIE!.  I chose to make her a house cat, for her own safety, and she was quite content with this arrangement, slowly growing quite "stout" and mostly lying on my bed except for rare little playful times or when she decided to punish Jorgee or me for bothering her when we attempted to interact. 

I loved Sweetie, and so did Jorgee.  In June of last year Luna Rae entered our household, at two months of age, a very active little Italian Greyhound girl.  Sweetie and Luna Rae did not establish a relationship as Luna Rae wanted to play and Sweetie wanted to hiss, growl and slap?  But each had their respective secure area and all was fine and I felt we were well on our way to establishing a "tolerance level relationship" between these two little housemates. 

Two weeks ago Sweetie started not eating or drinking one day and I took her to my vet who discovered, that she had developed acute kidney failure (we believed her to be only about 10 years of age by now so this was a much unexpected turn of events).  We tried to save her, treating her "in hospital" for four days but Sweetie, no doubt having already lived her "nine lives" at this point left this world, and our household, on March 27, with many tears shed and a big "hole" in this upstairs area where a little black Tuxedo cat, with white paws and face, lived, loving us in her own little independent manner and, in turn, receiving a lot of unconditional love, care and affection from her housemates.   

I will not seek another kitty; in the first place, no one could replace Sweetie and, living on this busy street, it would not be fair to bring a kitty into my home BUT I can't help but think (wish?) that another homeless creature, needing the caring/love that "Joan's Hostel for Animals and People" provides to all her "furry babies," just might show his/herself on our doorstep and need to be "rescued"?  I think they call this "wishful thinking"???  So, goodbye Sweetie, we all loved you very much and have many, many happy memories of your time with us, yes, too short, in time, but long in memory!!!!