In Memory of Lucy
February/March 2005 - 22 June 2006
After two weeks of battle with an unknown disease Lucy passed on while I was away.
When a hamster passes away, to some, it is just another animal death not worthy of thought. Nor, do some think, that the phrase "passes away" is as suitable as "dies". Others feel sympathetic, while a few grieve the lost of their pets. But when Lucy passed on, I didn't lose a pet; I didn't lose a hamster. I lost a friend, a child whom I have held, played with, and whose antics I have watched. A child who grew before my very eyes from a small fearful youngster to a bubbly fat lady. Now, no loud clankings of the cage gate will ever tell me that the little one has awaken and biting on the wires. Now, no eyes, one red and the other black will look back at me again. Now, only emptiness fill my palms when I wish to hold her firm body. But she didn't suffer any longer, and for that I am glad. She "had her eyes and mouth closed, like she was sleeping" when her tiny little soul left her body. And for that I am also glad. She found her final resting place in the dirty waters of the river, and that is hard to swallow. But only her body flows in the river, and that would eventually be claimed by Mother Nature. Her soul though, lives forever. While the whole population of the Earth never knew her existence, Lucy endures in my heart.
February/March 2005 - 22 June 2006
After two weeks of battle with an unknown disease Lucy passed on while I was away.
When a hamster passes away, to some, it is just another animal death not worthy of thought. Nor, do some think, that the phrase "passes away" is as suitable as "dies". Others feel sympathetic, while a few grieve the lost of their pets. But when Lucy passed on, I didn't lose a pet; I didn't lose a hamster. I lost a friend, a child whom I have held, played with, and whose antics I have watched. A child who grew before my very eyes from a small fearful youngster to a bubbly fat lady. Now, no loud clankings of the cage gate will ever tell me that the little one has awaken and biting on the wires. Now, no eyes, one red and the other black will look back at me again. Now, only emptiness fill my palms when I wish to hold her firm body. But she didn't suffer any longer, and for that I am glad. She "had her eyes and mouth closed, like she was sleeping" when her tiny little soul left her body. And for that I am also glad. She found her final resting place in the dirty waters of the river, and that is hard to swallow. But only her body flows in the river, and that would eventually be claimed by Mother Nature. Her soul though, lives forever. While the whole population of the Earth never knew her existence, Lucy endures in my heart.
Short Biography
She wasn't the most active hamster amongst the many at Toby Pets. While few others were scurrying around, an orange figure sat and cleaned itself, eyes closed. It caught my eye because it was the largest among the numerous others, and I needed one that is big enough to accompany Lulu who was already quite big. After ensuring that she was indeed female, the little creature who would soon be named Lucy was carried home in a small red cardboard box. She would squeal every time my finger went close. Long after we were home, and long after she got acquianted with my scent and touch, Lucy was moved from the glass aquarium into the cage where Lulu was asleep.
It wasn't the best start to friendship that I had hoped for. Lucy, the largest of her batch and yet only half the size of Lulu, naturally was afraid to approach her new roomie. And Lulu initially was not that friendly either though later, to my relief, the two soon shared the blue roofed house. To speed up her growth, Lucy was given a larger helping of food. Of course her greedy hamster nature helped alot in this effort. She once hoarded all the carrots, peas and corns - Lulu's portion included - in her cheek pouches that her head became almost twice as large as her bottom. A little greedy bully she was!
Lucy eventually outgrown Lulu, yet she was an ever cautious little hamster, taking the ladder instead of jumping off the floor, feeling her way properly before landing from the tunnel. But she was still a bully. A fat, furry, cautious, yet adorable little bully. During the days when the two no longer get a long well, and fights were frequent, Lucy had always inflicted more injuries on Lulu than what she got in return. Fierce yet fearsome. That was Lucy.
