Jerry “Furball” Bartlett Jr. AKA “JJ”
Born: March 11, 1991
Died: July 28, 2005
Lived: over 14 years

I knew him before he was born. I knew his mother and father since they were kittens. I remember the day that JJ was born. A litter of 7. One was just like his father - Jerry. He was always there when I came home. Greeting me at the door. He would always wake me up. Sometimes with a pat on the face with his paw. Other times by wrapping his paws around my toes.

I remember the times he would sit in my lap and kneed my legs. Or he would curl up on my stomach and purr very loudly. Sometimes he would look up and then rub his cheek against my chest. Every dinner time, he would greet me by rubbing each cheek along my hand as I served his meal. I remember the sound he made every thanksgiving dinner as he gnawed on a fat piece of turkey. “meowmm… meowmmm…meowm…”

I remember how he loved to play with a string that I tied onto a fishing pole. On the end of that string was a toy mouse. I would toss it across the room and he would dash to catch it! I can still remember him as though he was still here. Sitting in my lap as I type this up. He will continue to live on in all our memories…

JJ. My “Lion King.” “My Precious.”
To this memory, I dedicate a poem I wrote for him titled “Good Bye, My Son…”