Mary Baker Duncan was born on an April afternoon in 1986 on the patio outside our trailer in Tucson, one kitten in a litter of 5. When we moved into this trailer park, we began feeding the many strays and we became especially close with a female cat that we named Branwen, also known as Brownie. When we noticed that she was pregnant, I built her a little cat house in the hopes that she’d choose to deliver her babies in it and that we could help keep them safe in this rough and tough neighborhood.

I left one afternoon to do some computer consulting at a law firm and while I was there, Inga called to report that I was now the proud stepfather of 5 kittens. She said that Brownie came to the screen door of our trailer and called her. Inga came out to see what was up and Brownie got right in her little house and went to work. Brownie got pretty tired so Inga helped out with getting the babies organized along with bringing her water to drink.

To make a long story short, we found a good home for 2 of the kittens. We kept 3, Mary and her two sisters, Sarah and Ilsa, as I had deemed all adoption candidates in the trailer park as unsuitable after conducting interviews. In case you think I was overly critical of the applicants, one guy said he needed a new cat because his dog had eaten his. Another said he accidentally shot his cat while cleaning his shotgun. See what I mean? What did I expect from a bunch of Harley bikers?

When our eldest female cat, Alice, passed away, Mary became what is known in our household as the “Senior Bed Rat” and she took her duties seriously. She bossed the other cats around, made sure that all new kittens knew their place within the pride and she loudly demanded extra snacks and extra lap time of us as befitted her rank. For years now, Mary has known instinctually when I should be arriving at home and once I got in the door, she’d follow me around and nag me until I sat down and made her a lap to climb into.

Due to her very loving nature and a great appreciation of quality petting, Mary made many friends over the years and she will be sorely missed. Some of you know that she’s been having respiratory problems and the vet was able to keep her comfortable for awhile with medication. When that was no longer helping her, I took her back to our wonderful vet who we’ve been going to for 14 years as it was time to let Mary go. She gave Mary a sedative, handed her to me to hold and left the room for awhile. As Mary drifted off to sleep against my chest, I realized that I held her the very day she was born. Now I was holding her on her last day as a physical being. I felt her energy within my aura and I felt the deep bond between us. How many times have I taken a nap on the couch with her lying on my chest, purring? How many times have I realized how blessed I was to have such a special friend? As much as I knew, beyond a doubt, that Mary is an immortal, spiritual being and that she’ll always be my friend, I began sobbing as it truly hit me that I was about to be deprived of holding her beautiful, purring body. I expanded my consciousness into the astral realm and Mary’s higher self appeared before me. Out of the tunnel of Light before me came her sister, Ilsa, who passed away some years ago. They both assured me that Mary would be just fine and I could feel their unconditional love for me. I then became aware of Inga’s higher self and the presence of White Elk, my spiritual guide and teacher. He came to me and took her astral body into his arms. He, too, told me she’d be fine and the anxiety I felt faded away.

The vet came back in the room, administered the final shot and I relinquished Mary’s body. Walking out of the vet’s with an empty cat carrier was just about unbearable for me. I cried all the way home. Once home, I took a nap on the couch and as I closed my eyes, I felt Mary snuggle in next to my tummy. Her energy merged into my aura once again and I drifted off to sleep knowing that she was fine. Goodbye, my little angel. Thanks for bringing such beauty, affection and playfulness into our lives. We are physically apart for now and yet I know our friendship will endure in Spirit forever. Love, Scott */:-)