A Tribute to My Faithful Childhood Cat Sara

When I first met my cat Sara I was ten years old. I had been begging my mother for a cat for around 6 years... ever since my mother had euthanized her (our) cat Goofy, right after I was rushed to the hospital due to an asthma attack that I had suffered from at 4 years old. I was heart broken and in need of a new therapeutic feline companion. But I was allergic to cats! Fortunately, after the asthma attack, I had started receiving allergy shots and finally, at the age of ten years old, I was able to convince my mother that I wasn't allergic to cats anymore.

We tried getting a snake and a guinea pig but their companionship just wouldn't suffice. One day my mother's boyfriend Jim took us to a picnic at his friend's house. There were several kittens walking around in the backyard. They were all black except for one kitten who was black and white. She also just happened to be the smallest of the litter. This tiny black and white kitten walked right over to me. At that moment she had chosen me to be her new human companion!

A few days went by and all of a sudden Jim showed up at our front door with this tiny little black and white kitten. She fit right into his big sneakers! My mother was concerned about her small size and thought she might have been a runt with health problems, but she turned out to be just fine!

I was overjoyed and immediately named her Sara... which I didn't know at the time was also the name of my great paternal grandmother!

Sara lived a very simple, insulated, sheltered life with my mom and myself. But mainly with my mom, as I eventually moved out. My mother was very over-protective and wouldn't even allow Sara to walk out the front door of the apartment even though we lived in an apartment building with a doorman. Sara was curious and a few times I managed to get my mother to allow her to take a walk down the hallway. My mom was super anxious about allowing this but I knew that Sara just wanted to look around and not run away! A few times Sara stayed at my grandmother's apartment, but that was just about as much excitement as she had experienced. She didn't have any cat furniture as far as I can remember... and barely any toys. Perhaps just a cardboard box and maybe a mouse? Maybe a string? She didn't even have any other cats to play with. She lived a peaceful, stable, simple indoor life surrounded by love... and quite a bit of yelling unfortunately. So perhaps not that peaceful! But much better than being a stray cat on the cold New York City streets! Although, she did have to take baths often because my mother was concerned about my allergies and my mother did decide to declaw her front paws not realizing that declawing is considered abuse. No one spoke of such things back then!

Sara was (and still is) a very special sweet cat! She helped keep me sane during a very turbulent childhood. She was (and still is) my therapy cat. I experienced many moments of depression and mood disorder growing up... and Sara was right there by my side to help me through it! I would cry to her and she would listen.

I often wished she would sleep in bed with me. She slept in the bedroom with my mother who was the one who fed her! I would try to get her to sleep with me but she would leave. I was probably too forceful with her when I was younger. But I do have a very fond memory of pushing her under my covers one time and hearing her purr.

I showed Sara lots of affection by kissing her on the lips constantly, which upset my mother greatly. I think one time my lips covered her nose and I almost suffocated her! Oops! I was more careful after that! One time I decided to try to get her to lick my lips. I rubbed a green olive with a pimento in it all over my lips. She started licking my lips and all of a sudden... she took a bite out of my lips! I screamed in horror! Lesson learned! I can look back on that moment now and laugh. I was being a stupid kid!

Another time in 5th grade, when I was being a stupid kid, I invited a friend over and for some reason we decided to create a ritual to call on the Devil in my bedroom. In that creepy moment I got the chills and knew that we shouldn't have tried to call on the supposed Devil. Anyway, my cat Sara walked right into my room and hissed at my friend. I knew that Sara could see/ feel what we had invoked. I immediately told the Devil to leave and stated that we had made a mistake. I was so spooked that I had to get out of my bedroom for a while and leave the apartment!

Another time when I was in Junior High school I decided to allow a sweet homeless dog to follow me home. When we got into the apartment he saw Sara and immediately attacked her. Fortunately, he simply scraped her leg, but I was very upset about the situation and kicked the dog right back out on the street. I felt terrible for Sara, but I actually ended up feeling worse for the dog, and even now to this day I wonder if this dog ever found a loving home. I hope so! Anyway, that was probably the most excitement Sara ever had in her life! She really didn't do much but look out the window and sleep.

Right after we adopted Sara I started going away to sleep away camp in the summertime. I have a feeling Sara helped my mother adjust to me not being around when I was gone. I went away to college for a while and then moved out for a while. At one point, in my early twenties, I made an impulse purchase when I moved into my first apartment. I walked into a pet store and fell in love with a baby Quaker parrot. I purchased him but soon realized that I had no idea what I was doing. I could barely care for myself. I was dealing with a major mood disorder, gastrointestinal problems and exhaustion.

My beautiful sweet green Quaker parrot named Joey ended up living with my mom, her boyfriend and my cat Sara. Sara had a new bird companion!... And interestingly, she never tried to hurt him! They became friends! My mother even told me that Joey would fly down and land on Sara's back. Sara was (and is) such a sweet cat, that she tolerated Joey's unpredictable bird behavior.

In my early twenties I ended up moving to Los Angeles and would only see Sara when I came back to visit from time to time. One day I received a call from my mother. Sara was 17 years old at the time and had been very sick with kidney disease. I didn't realize just how sick she was. My mother had been giving her iv fluid treatments for a while but didn't tell me about it. At the time of the phone call my mother had a trip planned to visit a friend in Florida the next day. Sara was supposed to go with her. At the very last moment my mother decided that Sara was too sick to go on the trip so she would just euthanize her before the trip. My mother was actually at the vet with Sara getting ready to have her euthanized when she called me. I was devastated! I would've liked to see my dear Sara one last time.

My mother placed Sara on the phone with me as I was trying to hold back my tears. I told Sara that everything was going to be okay and that we would always be together and that I loved her very much. And that was the last of Sara...or so I thought!

I found out recently from my mother that Sara was taken down to a basement by herself and had to wait hours alone before she was euthanized. I was horrified! I couldn't believe that my mother allowed Sara's last moments to be so terrible. I would've done things much differently. And I definitely would've canceled the trip to Florida!

In 2012, a few years after Sara had passed away, I felt the presence of a cat sitting on the bed with me but when I opened my eyes no one was there. I had two male cats at the time. This had happened a few times since 2012. Right before my cat Dottie was euthanized in October 2024, and she was too sick to jump up on the bed with me anymore, I felt a cat jump up on the bed with me, but no one was there! I wasn't sure that Sara would even still be around after leaving her physical body approximately 17 years ago. But I recently discovered that she's been with me this whole time... And after Joey passed away he joined her!

I realize it sounds quite unbelievable... But my cat Sara, my bird Joey and my recently deceased cat Dottie are all good friends now... and keep me company and watch over me and my two male cats Roscoe and Felix. I am very blessed to have them all with me still... But back to Sara, because this is her tribute! Thank you for your faithful loyalty and companionship! Thank you for staying with me! And thank you for finally giving me what I always wanted... I finally have you in the bed with me every night! I love you my beloved Sara! You can stay with me forever my sweet girl! Having you around is a great joy and blessing! Thank you!

Jennie H is a Reiki Master Energy Healer, Co-Founder of Self Saviorz Society California Non-Profit 501(c)(3), Poet, Author and Entertainer with goals to help raise the vibration and consciousness of humanity!

Sara is a beautiful cat spirit who left her physical body around 17 years ago, in approximately 2007. Before she was euthanized Jennie told her over the phone that they would always be together. Little did Jennie know at the time that Sara would actually decide to stay with her, watch over her and be a constant loving companion to her. She is one of the sweetest, most wonderful creatures Jennie has ever had the pleasure of knowing. Sara may not be in her physical flesh and blood body anymore, but she is still very present and enjoys the good after-life life at Jennie's Los Angeles apartment where she is welcome to stay for as long as she likes!