Dearest Friend of Tux,

Tux and I shared a conversation this week regarding seasonal shifts and empty nests. We both feel that our living spaces are a bit quieter than “normal”— a bit too quiet.

We also agreed that the atmospheric changes that we are both experiencing are for reasons that are certainly celebratory.

September is a month of many transitions. Young people go back to school and fall into new routines. College students return to their respective homes away from home and take up their busy course schedules.

The cats feel their absence in very real ways. Mere weeks ago, the suites of Tabby’s Place were filled with so many friends bearing treats and wand toys, delivering meals, and spending quality floor time with the cats. Activity has slowed, and absent friends are missed, but your love for Tux is steady and fills his days with joy.

My own two children have headed off to college and, for the first time in over twenty-two years, my husband, I, and our three cats find ourselves alone in a space that is much too quiet. We also find ourselves seeking out one another as if to fill up better the quiet, empty spaces that we feel in our home.

Tux understands.

In the short span of a single week, three of Tux’s roommates moved to their forever homes: Bologna, Bob, and Marmalade. While Bologna and Marmalade were both quiet kitties that tended to occupy a very small amount of dedicated space in the Community Room, their absence is felt. The absence of Bob is both heard and felt. He was always the first to announce his presence and wasted no time sauntering over to visitors for some leg rubs and gentle pets.

Tux has been out and about in the Community Room on more frequent occasions in the last weeks. Is he looking for missing faces, or is he simply out filling up the space that seems a bit too empty right now?

But just when Tux and I were feeling a little overly reflective, a very exciting thing happened in the Community Room.

The physical space was transformed in a most welcome way for Tux—Ginny’s desk merged with his very favorite window seat! Now Tux can simply walk across the desk to move from his elevated nesting perch to his window with a view. One might call this single-story living at its finest.

The brilliant transformation is warmly welcomed by Ginny, too, who now has more space for her administrative work (and more space for napping cats). It’s a win-win all around.

So while September ushers in a season of change and transformation, Tux is immensely grateful to have you right by his side. Your steadfast love fills his days with warmth and his heart with peace.

Your correspondent,
Lisa