Two weeks ago, on the day I left for a two week long trip, Nero died. Jamie had to bury him by himself. Now that I am home, I miss Nero in all the places he used to be. I dreamed last night that he wasn't dead and Jamie buried him by mistake. He was all covered in dirt and we were taking him to the vet.

Jamie and I had a service for him today. I made effigies of a chipmunk and a lizard, his two favorite things to catch. We buried them with his favorite toy. I made a tiny clay bowl, filled it with salt and placed it on top of his grave. Then we spread white hydrangea blossoms from the bush in our yard.

Jamie and Nero were real buddies...