Luke Preystalker has passed away…

My dearest friends,

Last night, I saw one of the most touching and selfless acts I have ever witnessed between a human and another species.  Our cat, Luke, 18 years of age, has not been well due to advanced age and wear and tear on this very “outdoor” cat.  Alice and Justin have nursed him over the past few months in his advanced years by paying attention to his very unique requests, namely the timely and most exacting specification and preparations of his meals.  Luke would make his intentions abundantly clear about his needs.  He would come up to us and meow, generally, only once and then stare intently at you.  If you ignored him (which is what I would usually, but unsuccessfully attempt to do), he would then jump on you, jump across you, shove objects off of tables, chairs and counters and break things until you got off your duff and prepared his meal.  This would occur even if you prepared the meal to his exacting specifications only 15 minutes prior.  After all, in 15 minutes, the freshness of the meal would have changed.  He destroyed his latest coffee cup only last week, in a single sweep of his mighty paw, in order to make clear that he wasn’t joking around.

Luke needed special dietary considerations as he grew up almost exclusively on wild game.  I can only account for his ‘confirmed kills’ based on the remains he would either leave for us outside on the front door mat, or, the nearly, but not quite dead prey, he would quickly scoot around your legs and run into the house with.  To give a sense of scale of Luke’s accomplishments, here is what I remember in terms of species he consumed on a daily basis:  Doves, Bluejays, Mockingbirds, Black Gravels, pigeons, Owls, Squirrels, Possums, Snakes, Iguanas, very large Iguanas, Cuban Anoles, very large Cuban Anoles, assorted small dogs, mice, rats, really big rats, spiders, lizards, cockroaches and frogs.  Often, all that was left, particularly of his favorite prey, anoles, would be just the head.  We think he picked his teeth with what remained of their claws. Even in his last few weeks of life, he nailed a few more rodents and birds here in Miramar, but mostly to play with as his aging teeth and gums prevented him from truly enjoying the South Florida suburban wildlife scene to his full satisfaction.

I have fond memories of Luke rushing into the house with an Iguana (variety: large), in his mouth, its tail thrashing about, and Luke jumping onto a chair and then growling at me for attempting to take his prize away from him.  I did not even dare.  Rather, using a broom, I tried to guide Luke back outside, but, instead, he decided to go visit the bedroom for more privacy for enjoying his still moving meal.

As some of you may remember, Luke’s meow was extraordinary.  He spoke with a demanding ferociousness and seriousness.  He would stroll, determinedly, to my bed, and, with a single meow, wake me up and compel me, zombie-like, to attend to his needs.  His meow even reached me in my dreams, as I awoke in India one morning to me dreaming of him meowing at my bedside in India, which is quite an unusual self-referential experience, I might add. I immediately awoke, heart racing. I’m glad I had that dream, because if I had not awaken at the time of his meow, I would not have finished a project that was due a few hours later.  I am convinced that Luke’s ESP traversed the core of the planet to ‘ping’ me awake. Thank you, Luke.  Luke’s voice, I’m also convinced, was honed in Cat Officer Training – it was so commanding!  I should also point out, that Luke, given 18 years experience with humans, did understand an impressive inventory of words (many obscene) in English.  Now, just because he understood you, it didn’t necessarily mean that he agreed with your opinion, particularly the words or phrases such as, “No” or “Not Now” or “Give me a minute”.

Luke’s voice will be missed. Alice picked up Luke last night as he layed listless on the floor.  She fed him and gave him water, and held him closely.  She held him in her loving arms for many hours, even after I had gone to sleep, she continued to love and embrace and comfort her beloved cat.  Hours later, Luke passed away in those loving arms, the only mother and clearly best friend that Luke really ever had.

Luke’s passing brings full circle the point to where Luke first entered out life.  18 years ago, while Alice was visiting the FAU Boca Raton Campus Library, she had two small boys with her, Jason and Justin.  As they approached the car, they heard a small kitten meow.  Nearby, in a tree next to the car, they came across the kitten, took him home and named him after Luke Skywalker of Star-Wars fame.  This week, one little boy, now a young man – Justin – parks nearby that same fateful tree as he now lives in the dorms at FAU.

This is a lot to say about a cat, but a cat who lived such a life as Luke, and who enriched our lives so memorably, deserves a word or two to mark the great journey that we all took together for so many years.  We will all greatly miss you old friend.