50 Days

Today

50 Days since Chucky left us

Bardo is completed

Chuck's portrait 

Chuck's favorite piano stool lookout

The last woolie sock that Chuck ever herded

The very last photo taken of Chuck

During the deep cold that we've recently experienced, I found myself more than once wanting to check on Chuck, who usually slept in the blanket-draped rocking chair.  You had to lift the blanket to see him!  The Hubby and I miss him; we talked about Chuck when out at lunch this weekend.  It's kind of hard to talk about him while at home; why is that?

Bardo

Can Chucky really be gone a week already?  It just doesn't seem possible.

Chuck loved this beddy!

The Hubby and I have chosen to observe the Tibetan or Buddhist tradition of bardo, for Chuck.  In a nutshell, while a soul is in transition between the physical and spirit worlds after death, the family shows great love by leaving everything as that soul knew it in life.  Beds, bowls, favorite toys, pile of woolie socks...all remain and are not put away. 

We created a Chuck shrine, which consists of a framed photo, and we talk out loud to Chuck.  The presumption is that he will visit 'home' during the 49 days after his passing, to observe us and recall his life.  We honor him with our loving words and this allows him to remember everything, and will help him move on to his next life.  After the bardo period, we will rearrange things to suit living with Angel alone, such as removing a couple of litter pans, uncovering the chairs that are draped with blankets under which he loved to sleep, and dispose of his medicines.

I suggest that you search the interwebs under author David Michie, where you can read about bardo in his blog dated August 5, 2017.  Mr. Michie has written many books, but we cat people may know his "The Dalai Lama's Cat" series most of all.

Again, thank you for the kind thoughts and prayers. 

💗😿💗