Enzo was not a person, he was better than a person

 

                                                                    Enzo using me as a pillow

When I worked at Wal-Mart I had a conversation that I will never forget. It was early in my shift but late in most others. A woman came through my line and we got on the topic of joking about things that our animals had done. With a laugh I said, "Cats are terrible people." I said this of course in a joking matter and half way referencing an old Family Guy cut-away She looked back at me with a confused face, as if I had something odd or strange.

"Animal's aren't people," she replied.

"Well, they are to me," I said in the bitchiest customer service voice I could. That killed the conversation and I quickly rang up the rest of her items.

Aren't people? How so? Because they aren't human?

                                                                    Tiny kitten Enzo

Recently I am reminded how much "people" animals truly are. Last night we laid to rest our sweet Enzo. Here I am the next day, grieving much like I would a person. When seeing the other cats my mind stills counts him a briefly questions where he is, then I remember. He's not on this plain anymore. While he was alive, he brought all of us joy. Enzo was pushy. He always wanted to be petted or cuddled. He was loud and would mew at you to get your attention. When he got attention he would purr loudly. His last few days were filled with sleeping, one of his favorite things to do. Once I knew it was him time, when his body became cold with the feeling of passing on, I made him a strong catnip tea to help with the passing.

But he wasn't "people?"

I've written in the past about how humans are awful at being people. Humans can be mean, hateful with no reason. We kill, we steal, we lie. One would argue that our flaws makes us human and while I don't disagree with that I don't see how an animal can't be "people" just because it isn't human. Animals offer us something in humans that most of us will never find: love with no limits. This was very true with Enzo. Even if you pushed Enzo away, he never got mad, he just waited, when you were ready he would be there. You can't say that about many humans, can you?

But he wasn't "people"?

No.

                                                          Void, Enzo and Dorian cuddling. The last photo taken of Enzo

Enzo was a better person than most humans. He was kind, he was caring right up to the ends. If you needed a hug, if you needed love or emotional support, Enzo was there for you. Sure, he might bite you on the chin while you petted him, but it was all out of love. He would sleep in the bathtub and quickly made friends with our shollie dog, Red. He would rub up against our son and purr at him. I don't think Enzo ever lashed out at me in anger or annoyance. 

So no, Enzo was not a person. He was better than a person. Enzo was a cat. We miss him dearly. Sleep well my sweet Pudge kitty cat. We will meet again someday.

-Aliee

Read more about Enzo's origins here:https://alieecatalley.blogspot.com/2017/06/thank-you-for-abandoning-your-kittens.html