Ernie

Someone once said that after you lost an important person in your life, losing a pet pales in comparison.

FYI? That's complete crap.

It's different yes. And the sadness at losing a pet comes from a different perspective. But it still hurts.

My cat Ernie had to be put down this morning. The poor little guy's suffered from kidney problems for just about all of his 15 years. I think a part of me knew when I saw him last at Christmas that he probably wouldn't be around much longer. And in a way, I already had to say my goodbye when I moved and he stayed with my parents. But it still hurts, and I still miss him. Lauren has two cats that I love dearly, but they're hers. Even though I couldn't bring him here with me, he was still "mine". And now he's gone.

In a way, he's another little broken piece of Emily I've got to let go. He was our childhood cat. He was still a link to my sister, and now that's gone too.

Losing a pet does pale in comparison to losing a person. But one thing I've learned over the last two years is that there's actually no comparison in grief. It can't be measured against any other kind of loss. It's like trying to measure how high up is. It simply can't be done.
And I'll sucker punch the first person that tells me that losing a pet should be easier after what I've been through.