19: Nara

Nara died Thursday morning while I was on campus and Dariya was in Seattle. She was hit by a car on our street and killed instantly. The driver notified our neighbors, who were gracious enough to keep her body until we both returned. With their guidance we found a serene location to bury her Saturday morning. She was buried in her bed with her stuffed companion. I have given her a full memorial at pics.neelfirst. If you have any media of her please email it to me or comment the link below.

There are many ways in which her loss hurts me, hurts both Dariya and I, but the most painful fact is that she was so young – just over two years old. We moved into our Berkeley apartment just six weeks ago – it was our first apartment with a pet door so she and Nunin could come and go at will. When we chose to let them roam outdoors freely we knew that there would be an added risk from the nearby street and we accepted its inevitability; it was just unimaginable that it could happen so soon and so suddenly.

From the moment we moved here she has been the happiest I have ever seen her during her life. She was truly content to play outside freely and come inside for a nap and a snack. She was loved, she had it good, she knew it, and she appreciated us for it. There are a thousand little lovely moments that Dariya and I have shared with her. What I treasure most is all the little lessons I have learned from living with her. It has been a wonderful experience to have Nara as a pet – my first pet.

Things I have learned from her:

It is okay, and in fact cool, to be a huge dork.
Anger and fear are only due to misunderstandings.
Being alone is hard. Having friends is healthy.
Ask for what you want until you get it. Flirt until you get it. Wreak havoc until you get it.
Have patience with different species that only learn when treats are involved.
The best love is between those who can be independent from each other.
If you aren’t playing, you aren’t living. If you aren’t playing with me, you are doing it wrong.
Girls are better than boys.
Love never forgets. Love always forgives.
You can’t protect a cat from danger without making his or her life seriously boring.
I don’t like cuddling. But if it makes you happy I will put up with it for a little while. That is love.
You just might have what it takes to be a decent dad.

Death is hard and life is unfair, but an open heart and an open mind will make things a little easier. I pledge to make the most of even the worst events by remembering what she did that made me happy, remembering what I learned from her, and remembering that we gave her a good life and a good home and she would never have wanted anything more.