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Angel Eyes was brought into the shelter in Colorado. A kindly neighbor had trapped her when her people had left her outside in the February snow and moved away. They took her in and she had her babies adopted out, but nobody wanted her. That May, I went to look at the cats on a whim (had one already). On my third visit to her, I took her home. She was such a handful that it was tempting to return her (which I have never done, by the way).

CAT. PHOTO: ADOBE STOCK/AKITO

My studio apartment was filled with her 24/7 crying for many days. Had to put her out in the car so I could sleep. She hung over her food defensively, and I could feel how hungry she had been. But she and my older cat tolerated each other and shared peacefully.

One day, like magic, everything got better. I made up a little song for her and promised her that she would never be cold or hungry again. Seventeen years later, that is true. She lives in a nice house with another rescued kitty and stays indoors in the sunshine, safe from the coyotes.

She has been the most amazing cat. When my other dearly loved 20-year-old girl passed away a year later, Angel Eyes came out and sat next to her and mourned. She would hardly eat for days. Then she started doing some of the loving gestures the other cat did and she became a great comfort to me in my relentless grief. When I had major major surgery in 2010, she became even more loving, shadowing me everywhere and healing me with her purr. Even non-cat people say she is beautiful. She is the sweetest, most loving cat ever.

How could anybody abandon her so cruelly? Their loss was my gain. Every day now with her is a blessing. She could leave me any time now - she has good days and some not-so-good days. Her hearing is gone, but everything else basically works. I am devastated by the thought of being without her, but I know that is the price we all pay. The day we bring our furbaby home is the day we know we are going to cry someday. Love is worth it!

PHOTO: MARIE MOONBEAM

Story submitted by Marie Moonbeam from Moab, Utah.

Angel Eyes' story was originally shared on The Animal Rescue Site. Share your very own rescue story here!