A Paw on the Walk of Feline Fame

March 31, 2026 Bernadette

Mr. Max's paw on the walk of feline fame. — Mr. Max’s paw on the walk of feline fame.

A least in this back yard! Mr. Max got his paw on the walk of feline fame out in the garden last week.

A friend had given me the original set of six solar paw lights just after we lost Giuseppe in December 2023. I wanted them all in the garden then, but it was winter and the soil was frozen, the bricks frozen to the ground. Just about the time it thawed we lost Mr. Sunshine, then Mimi felt pretty low but recovered, then in April I kind of got started on the garden with this in mind, then had surprise gall bladder surgery! Mimi got me started back in the garden at the end of July, then I lost her too.

By October, after I had given the whole area a once-over so it looked neat and inviting, I felt it was time to place that set, all six because other cats had been in that garden who had passed even before those five. I loved how they looked on the walk, and it felt so right.

Then I lost Basil that December…who would know I’d need that sixth one for him, even though he was never out in the garden? His spirit would follow his mentors and his true feline family.

solar pawprint lights in garden — The solar pawprint lights in the brick path at dusk.

That set of paws lasted a year and a half in all weather before the lights started giving out and even a battery change didn’t help four of them, so I looked for and found similar set of the same style of paw print lights.

I considered where to place Mr. Max’s paw as I looked for the type of paw lights I wanted. I had originally thought I’d just respace the other six and fit him at the entrance to that path. All the paws are walking in that direction so he would be at the end of that line, fitting since he seems to be the last one of this cycle of loss, but actually at the entrance to that path.

Mr Max asking me why we didn't do this sooner. — Mr Max asking me why we didn’t do this sooner.

But I had another spot in mind at the same time, an area I associate with Mr. Max and his brief time out there. Giving the decision some time, it felt more right for him. The spot is where he and I sat for hours on his last day, looking out into the rest of the garden and the yard. Despite the sad nature of the spot Mr. Max and I made the most of our last hours together and I always feel him there. In the photo below, above my toes and next to Max’s shoulder, you see a bit of bricks under all the leaves from the broccoli and radishes and arugula leaning over the path. The dark area at the top of the photo is the main path where the rest of the lights are set that comes to a T with the smaller path between the beds.

When the set came in I could still use two paws of the original set in the main path so added four of the new ones. With two left over, one of them was for Mr. Max.

I sometimes go when twilight falls in my back yard, long before actual dusk because of the hill where I’m at the bottom. The light is really magic and I often feel their presences then, and sometimes just general activity.

But I always visit later. Unless I’m for some reason not home I go out just after sunset and sit in one of my found wicker chairs and watch the lights come on, one by one, the six paws in the path, Mr. Max’s paw on the other path, and the three color-changing lights, hummingbird, butterfly and dragonfly, come on one by one around the bird bath.

The birds are singing their good night songs and the first stars appear, if the sky is clear. It’s a beautiful way to end the day.

It's Jupiter just about the middle. — It’s Jupiter just about the middle.

~~~

In the grainy photo of the garden above, the main path with the paws is on the left, the bird bath is directly ahead, and Mr. Max’s paw is near the right edge. I also have a string of lights on the picket fence along the top of the garden. Across the top of the photo, the reddish light near the center is the butterfly from the original set of color-changing lights I had around the bird bath four years ago, in 2022! They were here when Mewsette was still around and all the others too. This year the hummingbird and dragonfly did not work despite the new battery, so I used the butterfly on her own but kept the plastic hummingbird and dragonfly from the other lights. In the upper right, that light is a motion sensor light above my basement door. Over on the left is a stairway light on the stair post to the deck.

Here’s what it all looks like from the end of the garden. The wicker chairs are on the left.

Thank you for following our grief journey after losing seven members of our feline family.

I hope sharing our experiences have helped you in some way, as sharing my experiences with you helps me.

Read more articles about Attachments related to the loss of a beloved animal companion.

Also read articles about Pet Loss and Pet Loss in the First Person, where I share my own experiences.

You can read all the articles related to their loss by tapping the images in the side bar and in articles.

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