LAURA AND THE CAT -- EPILOGUE: ANNABELLA
We all love a happy ending…and a hope-filled beginning, and now we have both.
Annabella Louise Howard was born on May 3, 2006 to my daughter Laura and her husband, Geoff. A beautiful, perfect princess of a child! My wife and I were privileged to be at the hospital when Annabella made her entrance into the world and also when she arrived home to all the things that had been carefully arranged to greet her.
In my stories Laura and the Cat—Parts One and Two, I told the tale of a little ceramic cat from my childhood which ended up being passed on to my daughter. My hope was to someday have my daughter pass that little cat along to her child.
And so it has come to pass.
Sleep well, Annabella. You’ve been born into a family whose love for you is boundless and whose hope for you is without end. May you grow and thrive and play and giggle and love. And may the little greenish-grey cat that poked its way in and out of your grandfather’s life and into your mother’s life continue its journey on its way to forever in yours. --Love, Grandpa.
The Real Me