*This is in memory of my Familiar, Ganymede. We spent more than 14 years together. This is not a poem meant to be proper or contain rhyme or reason. It’s for her and she’ll understand.*
LETTER TO GANYMEDE
Dear Ganymede, Princess of princes, moon to the Gods
The most precious Soul to ever leave me reeling in
A seemingly unending grief
Wondering in my own beliefs
Diamond-like eyes sparkling sage
Oh how my oddities you never seemed to see
I am an outrage, an anomaly
Disturbing in my humanity
Happy I used to be
That first time you met me
Lost is my spirit now
As I spiraled low
But stand by me you did
No matter how black
My soul reflected
Death of a girl
Bitter old woman is near
My own life I feared
You gave me reasons to fly
When I really just wanted to die
Razor in hand
Road rage is real
Cutting reality out of my heart
Looking at you killed that deadly art
You gave me a thousand motives
To live and laugh
All having to do with you
Now I have nothing
You replaced all
All men
All children
All life abroad
How can I go on
When I have nothing
Gone is the gold
Gone is the bright
Water of the moon stopped stirring
Gently flowing back through space
Zeus called his beloved prince away
Back to Olympus to stay
Copyright 2014 Wanda S. Paryla
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WANDA S. PARYLA 
So sorry for your loss, Wanda. I see my familiar, Jasmine, getting quite old (she’s 16) and I’m dreading the day she leaves me. Perhaps when you’re ready another familiar will arrive. In the meantime, don’t forget Ganymede is still with you. ❤
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Jayne, thank you for your encouraging words. Yes, I love my Ganymede and I sure miss her a lot. I do feel her presence sometimes and it’s comforting. As your Jasmine ages, just be kind to her and spend as much time with her as you can. Take it from me, as with all losses of loved ones…do your best not to have regrets.
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Beautiful. I wish I could write such beautiful words in the midst of so much pain. I lost a beloved pet a few months ago. I can hardly talk about her without tears welling up in my eyes. I wonder, how did such a fine cat get such a fine name?
Thank you for linking this poem to the Hump Day Blog Hop. Such a heartfelt way to capture your sorrow with words. I loved it.
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Hi Julie, thanks for reading. Yes, I miss my Ganymede. I talk to her picture often. 🙂 The story of Ganymede’s name is coincidental. I was in astronomy class in college in 1999. The professor was talking about Ganymede, a moon of Jupiter. I thought, gee, what cool name for a cat. About a month later, I went out to look for a pet dog. Petsmart was having a shelter day. I went in and found only cats. I thought…what the heck. I started to visit them. One old fellow turned his back on me, another I was interested in didn’t seem very interested in me. Then there was this little black cat. So cute, but he was jumping all over his cage. I thought…uh-oh, curtain climber. Well his actions woke up a young Calico. She stood up, stretched, looked right at me and meowed. I said right out loud to her…you are the one. I took her home and named her Ganymede. Only about a year later did I find out about the Ganymede of Greek myth, who was a Trojan prince.
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