Run forever free, Leo ♥

It's been four months, since my darling Leo passed over to the other side. I still feel the loss acutely. Leo came into my life in the summer of 2012. At first, I thought he was a "she", only because he was incredibly shy and wouldn't let me come close. He seemed to be a wildborn cat, barely a year old, who had survived the streets until he found my home. 

It tooks weeks of patience and dedication to build trust with Leo, and it was going to be on his terms. Usually, he would appear at dinnertime , wolf down the food I had put out, and then run away into hiding. After about two months of this ritual, I noticed that he chose to linger just a little longer at dinnertime, eyeing me from a safe distance. I used to talk to him in a low voice, reassuring him he's safe with me. Then one day - I couldn't believe it - he came up close and very slowly I reached out with my hand and he rubbed his big, furry head on it. I was overjoyed!

From this day forward Leo accepted me as his friend and never strayed far from the garden. In fact, over time he became "King of the Garden" as I joked with family and friends. He absolutely loved it here. In later years he would come indoors for a bit, especially in Winter, but he was still wild at heart and preferred the great outdoors, no matter the weather conditions. We had built him a little wooden house with a snuggly blanket inside, which he slept in on the few extremely cold days. In Summer, Leo enjoyed lounging on the warm terrace tiles, only getting up to chew on some grass and lapping at the fresh water bowl. He spent hours snoozing and I spent many happy hours watching him.

Leo had a sweet personality. He was always friendly and sometimes reminded me of a lap dog - cute and cuddly and very layed back. It has been a great honor and privilege knowing him and more so, since the "wild" part of him had never really left and yet he chose to trust me completely.

His death came suddenly and truly shocked me, as only a week before we played hide and seek in the garden and all seemed normal. I tried everything to help him in his final moments to no avail.

I will never forget you, Leo. Say hello to Muffin, Samson, Beauty, Sammy and Sumi from me, if you see them.