On Tuesday, September 23, 2008, Yukimo passed away. After two perfect years of friendship and companionship, it was just... her time to leave.
On that particular Tuesday, the both of us had woken up on a pretty, sunny morning. Although Yuki had become weaker because of her old age, she didn't show any signs of illness that day. As I was wrapping up work and getting ready for my night class around 4:30 in the afternoon, I noticed that she had become extremely slow when walking around the cage. Within just an hour, I realized that she wasn't going to make it.
Her passing is by far the hardest thing I've ever had to go through. Honestly, I don't know how to bring up the courage to write this post... which is one reason why I had to wait a month to announce her passing. Shawn and I went through an extremely emotional period, but I have to say this: Yukimo, whether healthy or sick, was just amazing.
In early August, I had woken up on a Saturday morning to find that she had suffered from what looked to be a stroke and something happening with a tumor during the night. The shock hit so badly that I couldn't eat for the next few days and almost ended up in the emergency room. I had never felt that much pain before, both emotionally and physically. Yukimo meant everything to me. Somehow-- through some miracle-- Yukimo came back to me for an extra month and a half after that horrible happening. Even though she had lost half of her blood in those few days, I was able to nurse her back to health by feeding her and giving her water and juice by hand. After two weeks of hand-feeding her, she was back to her old self. I was in another state of shock-- a good one though. Seeing her run so fiercly in that wheel for those extra weeks was the best gift I could have ever hoped for.
So when September 23rd came around, the shock wasn't as big as the first time. I had been preparing myself for letting Yuki go... but it still hurt so much. The pain is still unbearable and I sometimes have to take a breather from whatever I'm doing to calm down and try to remember what good times I had with her. I guess this post is just another step towards moving on. I loved, and still love, Yukimo. I always will. Like I've told so many people: Yukimo wasn't just a best friend to me; she was my companion. She was with me every second of the day when I was at home, and I miss her so much.
To commemorate Yukimo and the time we had together, I'm posting the first video I ever took of her (back in 2006). In it, I'm introducing Yuki to Mom and Kathleen (since Beth and I were away at college). It's the first visual aid I have of Yukimo.
In memory of Yukimo, September 2006 - September 2008.
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