A friend helped me bury her in my backyard so I can look out and see her. It's comforting to see her grave. I feel she is not really gone then, just with me in a different way. She loved to look outside, which is why I eventually let her go outside for brief walks. So many wild animals made a home in my backyard this year. As if she created a safe place for them there by her presence. Welcoming. A family of bobcats. Maybe one of the babies was Izzy reborn?
She taught me about healing. She would come lay on the part of me that was in pain. How did she know? She loved people and taught me compassion and generosity (in a cat "I don't need you" way).
What I learned is that life is shorter than you think; it is better to have a friend than not; and Izabella was an unexpected gift, unwanted initially. I agreed to let her live with me only to save her life. But she made mine worth living.