Thinking About Ariel

I miss Ariel.

If you knew me two years ago, then you've heard of her. She was mine and Luis' first cat together. She was with me for 18 years, and died on 8 June 2008. I have a million images of her and there are pictures all over the house of her (and Chelsea, who died on 19 September 2008, also age 18). I think of them frequently and it is less difficult. And I have fur to bury my face in when it does hurt.

Still... you never know what can stir up the feelings...

Yesterday, while in the loo, I hear this loud, demanding meow from out of sight, and without thinking, I called, "Ariel?" It sounded just like her. I was floored. It was a little freaky and very disconcerting - not to mention upsetting. I called out for Sorcha and Siobhan but they weren't in the room.

The ghost of my cat?

I have no idea. 'Ockham's Razor would deny that: Ockham's razor states that "entities should not be multiplied needlessly". It's also called the principle of parsimony. It's the idea that other things being equal, among two theories the simpler one is preferable. Why razor? Because Ockham's razor shaves away unnecessary assumptions. Ockham's razor has applications in fields as diverse as medicine, religion, crime, and literature. Medical students are told, for example, "When you hear hoofbeats, think horses, not zebras."'

So I should think it was Sorcha (Siobhan doesn't meow except when it is time to eat, and even then, she just makes funny "mmmmrrrrrr" sounds). Sorcha isn't much of a meower, but she is falling into the habit that Ariel had: meowing as a form of Ash-radar. She would meow loudly or piteously to get a reaction from me - which worked flawlessly.

Well, Sorcha is learning the same lesson. If she meows I will answer. But that wasn't her meow, and when I answered, she didn't come running. So who meowed?

I guess we'll never know.

Still, I saw her in my office at work once. Now, you know I did not bring my dead cat to work (I didn't bring her home - I wasn't about to attempt digging a large deep hole in my backyard with its principal crop of rocks) and she was ashes by then. It was a glance and when I looked back, she wasn't there. You can say the mind can play amazing tricks and maybe it does. But this doesn't happen enough to be a common issue.

I don't know. I do believe in ghosts and I would not be dismayed to see my deceased cats. I wish Chelsea would visit... but so far, nothing.