Isik Kaya
Maymun is our little panther baby, silly vampirello, Makmuk, crazy tail and cheese monster Bombay kitty. He has the sweetest smell, and a fishy mouth but we always loved kissing his little vampire teeth. I grew up with Maymun, he became my best friend, the keeper of all my secrets, the best playmate ever and a confirmation that I in fact am a witch! Maymun later on in life had a brother, Capul. Our Norwegian forest beauty. As mighty as Capul was, he had the softest heart with strong paws that would always land with softness. Capul said goodbye to us very early, in a hard way... After over 13 years together, last winter Maymun got diagnosed with the last stage of cancer. We were offered extra tests, treatments that might keep him with us for a few more weeks. We declined. Maymun deserved to leave this world with dignity, care and love without pain and suffering. That’s when our vet introduced us to Cheryl. A day after Maymun was diagnosed, he was in pain and had no interest in eating or drinking anymore. We called Cheryl early in the morning, deciding that we would not let little Maymun to have another night in pain. Cheryl came in only a couple of hours later to our home after our call. From the first moment she sat foot at our home, Cheryl became Maymun’s guardian angel. She gave us space and kindness, explained the process professionally and calmly, giving us time to process and understand. She met Maymun with patience, respect and care and guided him on his last journey. One moment that I will be forever grateful for is when Cheryl told us that Maymun is not feeling any more pain, but he was still with us. My mother fed him his favourite Cheese Cake! His eyes got all big and excited, his little tongue licking the cake with pleasure before falling asleep forever. Maymun left us in my arms, on his spot with my mother giving him kisses, his tail reacting to our love songs until the very last moment. I forever miss waking up at 4AM to his cries for canned food, seeing his wide open mouth begging to be let out to the garden in the middle of the night, his brave heart that would challenge foxes and how he would sit in his little box on the porch and watch rain fall for hours. I kiss the little scar he left on my arm 12 years ago, everyday. We are forever grateful for Cheryl for making sure that our little Maymun is no longer in pain, for creating an environment so gentle in one of the hardest moments of our lives. And I hold infinite respect for her for the amount of love she holds for pets and humans to carry on such a difficult job with such sensitivity and courage. I can only wish Capul had also time to meet Cheryl to secure him a peaceful rest just like Maymun had. As today marks a year without my vampire boy, I am finding some peace dreaming our kitties are in heaven together through a little sentence from a short story I wrote when Maymun, Capul and I were young: ‘Maymun was up in the sky, chasing butterflies…’
