2020: "TILLY" DIED - "We Should Cherish Our Living Beings"

(01/05/2023)

By Bob Weaver 2020

Today we laid to rest our beloved house cat "Tilly," who briefly struggled to hold on to life for a few days, while we made her comfortable and letting her know we were there.

Our son Jon Weaver made her a small paper casket, covered her with a blanket and flowers, then performed a brief ceremony at her grave site, with our family and grandkids looking on.

Then marking her grave with a homemade cross.

Surely our family has some Buddhism in our brains, always respectful and loving toward God's creations.

We have blessed them all during life and after their passing.

In my lifetime, there have been lots of cats and dogs to share their lives with us.

Many are buried in our pet cemetery near our Hur homeplace, where a few dozen have been laid to rest since the 1940s.

Among the first was my dog Blackie, who walked to the school bus stop every day during my 12 years of public school, and then to return in the evening when the bus dropped me off.

What a friend and what a reward.

Gautama Buddha:

"Besides the respect of the lives of human beings, all the animals and plants should be on the list too. That is the real humanitarianism."

"And so, with a boundless heart should one cherish all living beings."

"Harm no other beings. They are just your brothers and sisters."

"Mankind have love, animals have affection. The harmonious and beautiful world is revealed."