The animals we love become part of our families, our memories, and the stories of who we are.

The animals who shape our lives bring comfort and companionship into our homes. They teach us about gentleness, loyalty, trust, and unconditional love. And when the time comes to say goodbye, they often give us our first understanding of grief.

All of my animals have held an enormous place in my heart, but my first cat will always be one of my greatest teachers.

My love of animals—cats in particular—began when I was just three years old.

I’m not sure how it all came about, but I remember, as if it were yesterday, sitting in the back seat of my parents’ car and watching the world go by as we made our way to my Aunt Jane’s house to pick up my baby kitten.

He was a short-haired tabby, and for me, it was love at first sight.

I snuggled him all the way home, oblivious to everything happening outside the window because, inside that car, my world had just become a whole lot more beautiful.

My sister named him Thomasina. Aside from giving him his name, however, she kept her distance. We quickly discovered that cats were not her thing.

That worked for me. I was perfectly happy to have him all to myself.

As I grew older, Thomasina would wait in the window for me to come home from school. Wherever I was, he was usually close by. We always seemed to seek each other out.

He was more than my pet.

He was my companion, my comfort, and my first best friend.

Thomasina remained my best friend until the fateful night when he crawled inside my brother’s car in search of warmth and my world turned upside down.

My mom was at church.

Tiny threads held my broken heart together until she walked through the door. Then I fell into her arms, devastated. My heart shattered into a thousand pieces.

Healing from that loss was hard. Even now, as I draw upon the memory for this story, tears fill my eyes.

Losing Thomasina was my first encounter with death. It was also my first experience of the deep grief that comes from losing an animal we love.

As a little girl, I had never imagined that Thomasina would not always be there. I had no understanding that an animal’s life could be so fragile or that everything familiar could change in a single moment.

Perhaps nothing could have prepared me for the emptiness he left behind.

When we lose an animal, their absence can be felt everywhere.

In the quiet rooms.

In the familiar routines.

In the places where they once waited for us.

Although losing Thomasina broke my young heart, the love we shared did not disappear.

It became part of me.

He taught me how deeply we can connect with an animal. He showed me that love does not need words and that companionship can be found in a warm body curled beside us, a familiar face waiting in a window, or the quiet presence of someone who always seems to know when we need them.

Animals have a way of finding the tender places inside us.

They teach us to be gentle.

They remind us to slow down.

They offer comfort without asking us to explain why we need it.

And, far too soon, they sometimes teach us how to grieve.

The animals who shape our lives often remain with us long after they are gone. Their love settles quietly into our memories, becoming part of the way we understand comfort, connection, and home.

Many years later, the heartbreak of losing Thomasina became part of the inspiration for my first children’s book, Amazing Grace.

Grace was my best friend Jacquie’s classroom cat. Although she was not my cat, Grace and I shared a very special bond.

When Grace passed away in the warmth of the autumn sun at only a year old, Jacquie had to walk through that grief alongside a classroom filled with devastated children.

I knew how deeply they were hurting.

When Grace died, I felt strongly that hers was a story I was meant to tell.

Writing Amazing Grace became a way to honour her life and preserve the love, joy, and sense of belonging she brought to Jacquie’s classroom. It was also a way to help children understand that grief is part of loving—and that the animals we lose continue to live within the stories and memories we carry.

The book became a special family project, too. My daughter, Charlotte, illustrated Grace’s story, filling its pages with warmth, colour, and heart.

At the end of the book, children are invited to draw a picture or write a love note to an animal who holds a special place in their heart. I love seeing how children use those pages to celebrate their own beloved animals. Their pictures and words are beautiful reminders that every animal leaves a unique and lasting mark on the person who loves them.

Looking back, I can see that Thomasina’s story lived quietly inside me as I wrote Grace’s.

The little girl who had once fallen into her mother’s arms with a broken heart understood the grief those children were experiencing.

She also understood why Grace’s story mattered.

Every animal who shares our life leaves something behind.

A favourite memory.

A familiar routine.

A lesson in patience or kindness.

A story we find ourselves telling again and again.

Their lives may feel much too short, but their place in our stories does not end when they leave us.

Thomasina was the first animal to teach me that.

Grace reminded me many years later.

Since then, other animals have found their way into my heart, each bringing a distinct personality, special gifts, and lessons of their own. They have shaped our family, filled our home with life, and given me stories I will continue to carry and share.

They have taught my children about love and also about loss.

Such small beings, yet they arrive with so much to teach us.

Perhaps that is one of the greatest gifts animals give us.

They help us love more openly, live more gently, and notice the quiet moments of connection that make a life meaningful.

Even after they are gone, the animals who shape our lives remain part of who we are.

Is there an animal who has helped shape your life?

Perhaps today is a good day to remember—and share—their story.