San Diego Sunshine: May 2011

On Mother's Day at 10:30 PM, we had to put our cherished cat Lestat to sleep. I've never seen my young-men sons cry like this; it was all so sudden, and we were helpless to help him. His 15+ year old body gave out, as a multitide of things went wrong all at once. He'd just rebounded from one malady and was walking and eating again... then suddenly an imperfect storm of medical issues cascaded down upon him.

We've adopted plenty of seniors-- dogs and cats-- for years. These are the guys who are at the shelter for 6 months to 2 years before finding their new forever home with us. Seniors are really special, and seem to settle in happily quickly, grateful for another second chance.

I say all this to: A) help myself crawl through the sad days of missing him, and B) to remind us all that as people, we are always searching for the human side of each other. The people we do business with we expect to be professionals and experts at what they do. Yet we also long for them to show a human side-- if they make a mistake, to admit it, or if something is amiss, to just say it.

The week after Lestat died, my boys and I walked around in a stunned silence. People could tel that something was off, and I told them what had happened. Even the non-cat people were sympathetic.

I think people will always thirst for connecting with others... that's what makes us human. And when there's a way to share what's going on in your world, many times it opens up a new opportunity for others to do the same. And that's how true relationships -- business and personal--start to grow.

LeStat was super buff and super cool....he loved drinking water right out of the faucet and was a vegetarian.... bring out a meat platter and he'd ignore it, try to eat a salad and he'd be all over you...ouch, we miss our quirky cat!