Ashes

“Do you mind if we have a guest to stay with us for two weeks?” my girlfriend asked. “It’s a very special guest.”

Our friend would be going to the hospital for two weeks and needed someone to take care of his cat named Ashes. I’ve always liked cats although I have not had any since I was a teenager. Of course I agreed.

The hospital stay of our friend turned from two weeks to two months, and he offered to let us keep Ashes.

Ashes was 15, but very wise due to his age. He was intelligent and sensitive to our actions and thoughts. Even at 15, we taught him tricks, we played with him, and he experienced a second childhood.

Only two and a half years later, our beloved cat became ill and passed away. We were heartbroken.

I had read about a company in Texas developing cloning methods for cats and dogs. We thought it would be wonderful one day have a brother identical to Ashes. The vet sent a bit of DNA to the company.

The DNA of our cat is there, somewhere in Texas, and a backup in Iowa. Someday we’ll have Ashes’ twin with us and we’ll see the young “Ashes” that we never saw.