A week ago this past Thursday, one of my oldest son’s cats, Rick James, was stricken.

With what was not certain, but whatever it was, it needed immediate attention, and sadly even that proved not to be enough.

After a preliminary diagnosis of a ruptured bladder, the veterinarian went in only to discover it wasn’t repairable, it was pancreatic cancer.

My son and his girlfriend made the difficult decision that was in front of them and said their goodbyes.

Rick James was a charming little black cat that they got 11 year ago when he was just a kitten to be a companion for their other black cat, Mr. Bigglesworth.

Over time, Rick James and Mr. Bigglesworth became fast friends who, among other things, enjoyed crochet, and as my readers could no doubt guess, I was more than happy to oblige them with any crochet their kitty cat hearts might desire.

Here is Rick James with a kitty litter cat mat I made so they could wipe their feet after using the litter box, but for which he found additional uses:

here he is hanging out on the sofa and Weekend Granny Throw with Mr. Bigglesworth:

and here they are enjoying a rug I made (it would seem) for them:

As anyone who has lost a pet knows, the loss is devastating, and in this instance, not only were my son and his girlfriend left bereft, so was Rick James’s lifelong companion, Mr. Bigglesworth.

I fretted from afar about what to do.

I wanted to make it all better. I wanted to do what the veterinarian could not — bring Rick James back and restore their family to what it had been on Wednesday the 12th, not what it was on Friday the 14th with a big huge hole where a little black cat had been.

But I could not save Rick James, so I concentrated on doing what I could for those left behind.

I got my son and his girlfriend some chocolates and I packed up this sunshine and shadow crochet blanket that I had worked on (under Mr. Bigglesworth’s careful eye) when I had been out to visit in July of 2014:

Mr. Bigglesworth took to it right away:

and for now where he goes, his blanket goes:

When the world lost Rick James, crocheters everywhere lost an advocate for our fine craft, and my son and his family lost a constant companion, and for those of you who appreciate instagram cat photos, you can learn more about the life of Rick James here.

Related posts: I finish the kitty litter cat mat and move foward with the cookie-dough-ku
How to make the Weekend Granny Throw in a weekend
Do not go gentle into that good night
Sunshine, shadow, and rainbow: the story of a crochet blanket