Goodbye, Willow

Willow, 2009-2011.

 Dear Friends,

Our little rat, Willoughby (Willow for short), passed away today.

I suspect he was about two and a half years old, which is very old indeed for a rat.

When we got him for my birthday in July 2009, he was already full grown and being sold as a "jumbo rat."  I was just so happy that he made it to my birthday again.

In the past month, however, his health began to decline.  He began refusing his favorite treats, and never finished his bowl of food.  His breathing seemed labored.  He lay about listlessly.

Today, he left us and we are sad, but relieved that he will suffer no more.


I like to think of Ratty in Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in the Willows, and how he told the Mole, "Believe me, my young friend, there is NOTHING--absolutely nothing--half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats."

I like to think Willow is off somewhere messing about in a boat.

Godspeed, my little friend.

You shall be missed.

The natural world

Hello, and welcome!

Our orange and red daylilies have bloomed in front of our house.  We planted them about three years ago, and they have been strong and hardy plants. This year, a well-meaning neighbor accidentally weed-whacked some of them to about three inches off the ground. Those in particular did not grow much taller, but we are hoping that next year, they'll be back in full force. I'm very glad to see that the non-weed-whacked lilies are bright, shining and happy!

From tiny acorns...grow little oak saplings in our yard.

Our next-door neighbor has a great old oak tree in his backyard, and Steve recently found an oak sapling growing near our hedge. When he pulled it out of the ground, we saw the acorn from which it grew. The roots were growing from one end, and the sapling from the other. Neither of us had ever seen this before! I am sure there's an Eastern gray squirrel responsible for this...

And shown getting ready for a nap is our Norway brown rat, Willow, in the hammock Steve made for him.

Willow's been taking it easy a lot more lately, as he is pretty old. At the end of July, we will have had him as a member of our family for two years! As most rats only live about two years, we feel quite privileged to have him here with us.

Drop me a line and let me know if you'll be in hanging out in your hammock this week. Anyone have a vacation planned? Or even a staycation? I would love to hear about it.