Spay Day and Mr. Handsome – “Yes, Mom and Dad, It’s Me!”

Mr. Handsome managed to find this spot right away!

I grieve the loss of Casey every day, but through our Foundation work, find some solace. We are keeping Casey’s memory alive and are carrying on her legacy through our many programs and scholarships, including those that honor Casey’s love of animals. It’s all bittersweet, since we are doing these things because Casey is no longer with us. What I always long for is a sign that Casey’s spirit is alive and that perhaps, she is communicating with us. That sign came Wednesday at our Foundation sponsored Spay Day at Providence Animal Center (Providence AC) in Media.

It was the third spay event which our Foundation had sponsored and the second at Providence AC. Through our Foundation subsidy, cat owners were able to get their cats spayed and neutered for just $15. The event booked up at 80 cats within a few days of when we had announced it on social media. We knew that Casey would be pleased with the success of the event and that we were working with Providence AC (the former Delaware County SPCA), where so many of our family pets had been adopted.

It was great to see and greet the many cat owners with their carriers in tow at 9 am when the doors opened. Joel (my husband and Casey’s dad) and I also enjoyed seeing the staff at Providence whom we have come to know and love. We were given an updated tour of the facility and were impressed with the progress of the construction since we had last been there in July 2017 for Casey’s Day of Service. We made a brief but warm stopover with the surgery staff and then visited the kennels, stopping to see Ralphie, who was the most recent dog occupying the kennel which we had been sponsoring in Casey’s memory. After that, we went to one of our favorite places, the cat room, just to pay a call and admire the many beautiful kitties waiting to be adopted.

There were 50 or so cats and kittens and I loved looking at them all. They had a dozen or more adorable kittens, one more beautiful than the next. I asked to hold one kitten in particular that had lovely gray and black markings. He purred when I picked him up and I asked the staff his name. The response caused Joel and I to drop our jaws in disbelief. His name was “Mr. Handsome”! Mr. Handsome was the name of Casey’s horse! My instantaneous thought was that we were receiving a communication from Casey and that clearly, this 2 pound Mr. Handsome was destined to be ours. Casey was in fact with us and shouting, “Yes, Mom and Dad, it’s me!”

Was this all simply a coincidence? Was I grasping at straws trying to believe that I had evidence that Casey’s spirit was alive? I choose not to attempt to weigh the evidence one way or the other. In fact, there is no rational answer as we know it. Neither I nor anyone will know what happens to the soul upon the death of the body until we too, leave this earth.

In the meantime, I will find solace in our experience in the cat room and adoption of Mr. Handsome, feeling that it was meant to be. I’ll enjoy our rambunctious, little kitty and know that Casey too, would have found great joy in this new addition to our family.