Christmas Visitors

She took him home, and after showing him that we wouldn't hurt him, he became very attached to our mother.

I named him Killjoy after the lead singer of a band I was really into at the time, and we all loved Killjoy very much.

Mom passed on the summer before this happened, and we all were very much broken-hearted. Killjoy had to come back here to Louisville to stay with my brother and his girlfriend, and for months he became angry and destructive, wanting to go home to Mom.

It ended up that my brother had to buy a cage to keep him in, until he got used to their house... but Killjoy tried to bite his way out, and ended up hurting himself so much that the vets told him it was best that he be put to sleep.

Killjoy was as much a part of our family as my brother, sister and mother were... so needless to say; we again found ourselves broken-hearted with the loss of another family member.

That Christmas, we met my brother at his apartment to exchange gifts and have a little time together before we went to our cousins' annual Christmas gathering.

While we were sitting there talking, my brother and I suddenly heard a few loud barks come from the kitchen... both of us wide-eyed and mouths agape asked if anyone else had heard it... but no one else had.

Killjoy had come to let us know he was with Mom and happy... and we knew that if Killjoy was there, so was Mom.