Eulogy to Bentley
Oh beloved Bentley!
(Originally named Harriet but changed discretely upon closer inspection),
You who wriggled so charmingly on your bottom across the pet shop floor
(a sure sign of worms we later discovered).
You who wore the cat lead bravely, resisting the urge to get tangled in it and fight.
You who wore party head gear upon your back with the greatest of patience;
- one would have thought it natural for a cat to sport red antlers you carried them with such aplomb.
You who skipped chirpily in the footsteps of the 'previous cat in residence';
- charming him into smiling dotage.
Oh Bentley! Too soon was he taken from you! You should have had years together, adventuring side by side, his three muskateers to your D'Artagnan, his King Arthur to your Lancelot.
You took upon you the mantle of grumpy old cat long before your time, shouldering the burden with your usual gallantry.
'For someone must do it' you purred (before spitting and turning your back upon carefree youth once and for all).
Patiently you bore the appearance of the demonic fat one with no brain, rebuffing her with a stern claw and a pitying look.
Stoically you perfected the flounce, the pout, the bat with the paw, the watery eye of hatred, the low hiss of warning, the curling lip of disdain.
Every day you strove to raise your hips that little bit higher, to look that little bit more annoyed - to make avoidance of the immbecile, tub shaped, cretin seem like a happy coincidence rather than a desperate bid for sanity.
How we forgave you those lapses when you would purr like a fool, sidle up for love, (fight with the fat one with far too much enthusiasm for a misanthropic mog).
Ah Bentley, cat of cats.
Had we but known how much you detested the new brand of cat food...
Your final flounce of defiance shall not be forgotten, legend among cats - you threw yourself under that car like a real pro, defiant to the end, ready to show the world that such standards of service would NOT be tolerated.
Bentley, I salute you.
(Bentley, my parent's cat and student of life).
(Originally named Harriet but changed discretely upon closer inspection),
You who wriggled so charmingly on your bottom across the pet shop floor
(a sure sign of worms we later discovered).
You who wore the cat lead bravely, resisting the urge to get tangled in it and fight.
You who wore party head gear upon your back with the greatest of patience;
- one would have thought it natural for a cat to sport red antlers you carried them with such aplomb.
You who skipped chirpily in the footsteps of the 'previous cat in residence';
- charming him into smiling dotage.
Oh Bentley! Too soon was he taken from you! You should have had years together, adventuring side by side, his three muskateers to your D'Artagnan, his King Arthur to your Lancelot.
You took upon you the mantle of grumpy old cat long before your time, shouldering the burden with your usual gallantry.
'For someone must do it' you purred (before spitting and turning your back upon carefree youth once and for all).
Patiently you bore the appearance of the demonic fat one with no brain, rebuffing her with a stern claw and a pitying look.
Stoically you perfected the flounce, the pout, the bat with the paw, the watery eye of hatred, the low hiss of warning, the curling lip of disdain.
Every day you strove to raise your hips that little bit higher, to look that little bit more annoyed - to make avoidance of the immbecile, tub shaped, cretin seem like a happy coincidence rather than a desperate bid for sanity.
How we forgave you those lapses when you would purr like a fool, sidle up for love, (fight with the fat one with far too much enthusiasm for a misanthropic mog).
Ah Bentley, cat of cats.
Had we but known how much you detested the new brand of cat food...
Your final flounce of defiance shall not be forgotten, legend among cats - you threw yourself under that car like a real pro, defiant to the end, ready to show the world that such standards of service would NOT be tolerated.
Bentley, I salute you.
(Bentley, my parent's cat and student of life).