my best friend
I can still visualize my mom’s face
as she burst into my room, tears running down her face, crying about how our
precious Taz needed to go to the emergency room. Her face was red and swollen, and she could
barely because she was crying so much.
Her chest was heaving, and she looked broken. She just couldn’t calm down. She tried to explain to me how Taz couldn’t
walk by himself anymore. In what felt
like slow motion, I put down my homework books and went to get my beautiful
baby. I can still hear him panting and
struggling to get in one deep breath.
Then we were on our way to the vet.
Fifteen years before he got sick, I was one year old and I was lonely. My parents were always working, so I wanted a cat or dog. I would complain to my mom about how bored I was when she told me she was going to give me my wish. Only I did not know how fast she would grant it. In that same week, she brought home an adorable white kitten. He was completely white except for a grey Mohawk between his ears. He was so precious and little. He made little meowing noises that could melt the meanest person’s heart. He was a newborn, and hadn’t even opened his eyes yet. When she showed him to me, she told me to be very gentle.
“Lexy, he is just a baby like you, so be gentle with him,” she had said. He was so tiny; I didn’t think he was real.
As we both got older, we remained close and inseparable. Every night he slept with me; especially when there was a thunderstorm, and I was scared. He was my guardian angel. Even through high school, he would sit at my feet while I completed hours of homework. He always followed me around begging for food even though he was at least twenty pounds. Over the years, he gained a tremendous amount of weight. He ate just about anything at any time. It was his funniest personality trait. I assumed he would be with me until at least college; at least until April 10, 2014, when I was called out of school in the middle of the day.
Usually, I was never taken out of school unless it was an emergency, so when I was told I was dismissed, dread and fear coursed through me. I had already known Taz was sick from a previous vet visit. I was told he had a couple of months left, although he had been getting progressively worse. When I was called out, I started hyperventilating in the middle of chemistry class. All other sounds faded in the distance except for the pounding of my blood in my ears. I could not concentrate on anything other than the worst case scenarios that were playing like a movie in my head. I was so scared I could not walk straight, let alone know where the office was. That is why Stephanie walked me down to the office.
“Let us go. He is close,” my dad choked out. I could not even find my own voice, so I numbly nodded. The drive to the vet was excruciatingly painful and silent, other than the sobs of sorrow and despair that came from my father and I.
When we finally arrived at the vet’s office, my mom was waiting with Taz, wrapped in a blanket that was covered in his own sickly filth and grime. He barely looked alive anymore. He had been drooling mucus down his chin, and he had matted fur. He kept clicking his tongue to get rid of the slime in his mouth, but his ministrations did not work. Even though there was a water bowl next to him, he was not capable of drinking anything, making him extremely dehydrated and exhausted. He was so sick, he didn’t even purr when we petted him; that was a sign that it was his time. When the doctor came in, he told us about the issues Taz had.
“Taz is in the last stages of renal failure. We took some x-rays, showing us that he has a urinary tract infection as well as some other bowel problems,” the doctor said.
“Will he survive this?” my mom asked, her voice heavy with emotion.
“I do not really think that is his best option right now. He is lots of pain, so I would suggest putting him down,” the doctor suggested softly.
“If that is the best option for him, let us do it,” my dad said reluctantly. The doctor left us to let us spend our last minutes with him in peace.
When the doctor came back, we were as ready as we would ever be. They put an IV into his arm, and then they injected some chemical that would put him to sleep forever. We knew he was ready to go because he did not even fight or panic as he was put down. As this was happening, I watched the life drain from his green eyes. The same eyes that were so bright, they were like my personal green night light. What were once vibrant and full of life were now dull and half shut. I also heard him breathe his last breath, which sounded like a sigh of relief from his pain. His body sagged into my mom’s shaking arms. The next few minutes in that awful room were filled with many sobs and tears. I could see through my teary eyes the doctor and nurse. They stood off to the side with their heads down in respect. The pain my family and I felt, it was indescribable. No one could give us any consolation for the loss of our best friend.
The next few hours were spent by cleaning out all his bowls and food from my room. That was extremely painful. Shortly after, my dad drove me to a pet cremation store where I could pick out his urn. This was one of the hardest tasks I have ever done. I couldn’t figure out which one would work best for my baby. Eventually, I chose one, and created a template for the stand which says ‘MY BEST FRIEND’ along with his birthdate and his name. After all of that was complete, we went home to grieve.
Now, Taz’s urn sits on my desk, so that he is still with me when I do my homework. Although it has only been a month or two, I am still grieving and heartbroken. I know I cannot change his death, so I am trying to not forget, but move on. He was and is my best friend, forever and always.
Fifteen years before he got sick, I was one year old and I was lonely. My parents were always working, so I wanted a cat or dog. I would complain to my mom about how bored I was when she told me she was going to give me my wish. Only I did not know how fast she would grant it. In that same week, she brought home an adorable white kitten. He was completely white except for a grey Mohawk between his ears. He was so precious and little. He made little meowing noises that could melt the meanest person’s heart. He was a newborn, and hadn’t even opened his eyes yet. When she showed him to me, she told me to be very gentle.
“Lexy, he is just a baby like you, so be gentle with him,” she had said. He was so tiny; I didn’t think he was real.
As we both got older, we remained close and inseparable. Every night he slept with me; especially when there was a thunderstorm, and I was scared. He was my guardian angel. Even through high school, he would sit at my feet while I completed hours of homework. He always followed me around begging for food even though he was at least twenty pounds. Over the years, he gained a tremendous amount of weight. He ate just about anything at any time. It was his funniest personality trait. I assumed he would be with me until at least college; at least until April 10, 2014, when I was called out of school in the middle of the day.
Usually, I was never taken out of school unless it was an emergency, so when I was told I was dismissed, dread and fear coursed through me. I had already known Taz was sick from a previous vet visit. I was told he had a couple of months left, although he had been getting progressively worse. When I was called out, I started hyperventilating in the middle of chemistry class. All other sounds faded in the distance except for the pounding of my blood in my ears. I could not concentrate on anything other than the worst case scenarios that were playing like a movie in my head. I was so scared I could not walk straight, let alone know where the office was. That is why Stephanie walked me down to the office.
“Let us go. He is close,” my dad choked out. I could not even find my own voice, so I numbly nodded. The drive to the vet was excruciatingly painful and silent, other than the sobs of sorrow and despair that came from my father and I.
When we finally arrived at the vet’s office, my mom was waiting with Taz, wrapped in a blanket that was covered in his own sickly filth and grime. He barely looked alive anymore. He had been drooling mucus down his chin, and he had matted fur. He kept clicking his tongue to get rid of the slime in his mouth, but his ministrations did not work. Even though there was a water bowl next to him, he was not capable of drinking anything, making him extremely dehydrated and exhausted. He was so sick, he didn’t even purr when we petted him; that was a sign that it was his time. When the doctor came in, he told us about the issues Taz had.
“Taz is in the last stages of renal failure. We took some x-rays, showing us that he has a urinary tract infection as well as some other bowel problems,” the doctor said.
“Will he survive this?” my mom asked, her voice heavy with emotion.
“I do not really think that is his best option right now. He is lots of pain, so I would suggest putting him down,” the doctor suggested softly.
“If that is the best option for him, let us do it,” my dad said reluctantly. The doctor left us to let us spend our last minutes with him in peace.
When the doctor came back, we were as ready as we would ever be. They put an IV into his arm, and then they injected some chemical that would put him to sleep forever. We knew he was ready to go because he did not even fight or panic as he was put down. As this was happening, I watched the life drain from his green eyes. The same eyes that were so bright, they were like my personal green night light. What were once vibrant and full of life were now dull and half shut. I also heard him breathe his last breath, which sounded like a sigh of relief from his pain. His body sagged into my mom’s shaking arms. The next few minutes in that awful room were filled with many sobs and tears. I could see through my teary eyes the doctor and nurse. They stood off to the side with their heads down in respect. The pain my family and I felt, it was indescribable. No one could give us any consolation for the loss of our best friend.
The next few hours were spent by cleaning out all his bowls and food from my room. That was extremely painful. Shortly after, my dad drove me to a pet cremation store where I could pick out his urn. This was one of the hardest tasks I have ever done. I couldn’t figure out which one would work best for my baby. Eventually, I chose one, and created a template for the stand which says ‘MY BEST FRIEND’ along with his birthdate and his name. After all of that was complete, we went home to grieve.
Now, Taz’s urn sits on my desk, so that he is still with me when I do my homework. Although it has only been a month or two, I am still grieving and heartbroken. I know I cannot change his death, so I am trying to not forget, but move on. He was and is my best friend, forever and always.
reflections:
One
strength I had throughout this piece was my explosive details. I explained at least three scenes in explicit
detail. Another strength I had was
conveying my emotions through word choice.
You could tell what I was feeling throughout the whole essay in each
paragraph. One weakness is that I
repeated some words more than I needed to.
I chose this essay because it’s one of my best pieces. You can tell that I cared about my cat, and
how much pain I was in when he passed.
You could empathize with what I was going through, and that makes this
essay one of my favorite pieces.
piggy back poem: "heart attack"
Pleasure, passion; my pulse beats faster.
The blood, like molten lava, unbidden, came rushing to my face.
Then the pain is no longer sharp like a knife, but dull.
You will recover.
A change I had known before.
A joy amid tranquility.
Over and over again I told myself, we must go from here.
The bullock cart moves on without ever looking back.
Reflections:
I
selected this poem for my portfolio because it’s the best poem I’ve ever
written. I don’t write poems often, and
when I do they’re usually terrible. My
friend Macy and I wrote this on the spot using quotes from a novel. This poem flows and shows emotion. It also has personification, alliteration,
and two similes. This is my favorite
poem by far, especially because Macy and I wrote it.