Light brown cat with dark brown stripes sitting down inside

It was a pleasant surprise to learn that our vet made a donation to the college of veterinary medicine in Lily’s name.
Lily came to us 19 or 20 years ago. True to her mischievous nature, she followed my husband home when he took our dog for a walk one day. She waltzed right through the door as if to say “I’m home”. We assume she might’ve have been about 6 months old at the time but we’ll never know for sure. We already had a kitty about the same age and they bonded immediately and have been best friends ever since.
Lily was as mischievous as she looks and I admit, I loved that about her. No kitchen counter was safe from her snooping and she knew full well she wasn’t supposed to be up there. Her telltale giveaway was a little chirp she did whenever she was getting ready to do something naughty. So much so that our German shepherd was attuned to the sound and perked up each time he heard it and went to the kitchen to investigate.
But despite her naughty nature, she was my little love bug. Every evening when I got ready to change into my pj’s, she’d go with me, waited until I was done and went back downstairs with me. If I took too long for any reason while she waited at the bottom of the stairs, I would hear about it.
Those are the memories of her I will keep in my heart for the rest of my days and I’m eternally grateful she chose to move in with us so long ago.