Paranormal Story Archives
July 2002 – Page 29

Felix, the Ghost Cat
by Jean F.

Felix was my black, long-haired, Angora cat. I adopted him when he was about a year old from a young woman who was moving out of the country and couldn't keep him. Felix was one of those animals that many people were "drawn to" because of his quirky and almost-human personality, and a seemingly "Peter Sellers-like" gift of comedy. I got Felix when I was attending college and he was still with me when I married, got pregnant, and gave birth to my daughter, Carmen. He seemed to love Carmen from the moment I brought her home from the hospital, sleeping next to her in her crib and, as she grew older, spending hour after hour with her in her room - playing with her, or just napping near her.

I guess Carmen was about seven years old when "Mr. Felix," as everyone affectionately called him, passed away in his sleep at the age of about 16. We buried him on the hill behind the house, held a small ceremony there, and Carmen gathered flowers and laid them on his grave.

For months following "the funeral" it seemed to me as though I would catch a glimpse of him, as I had a million times, skittering across the driveway in front of my car as I came down the driveway. Then, I would realize this was impossible and dismiss the thought.

One afternoon, I was sitting in our living room, reading. Carmen was dashing around the room, skipping and playing and dancing, as only young children, with all that energy, are wont to do. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her start running from one corner of the large room to the other, when suddenly she stopped in midstride, her arms flinging out to counterbalance herself. She froze in this position, staring at the floor in front of her. Slowly, she turned her head to look at me, her eyes opened wide in an expression of pure astonishment - the rest of her body still frozen.

It seemed as though she wanted to say something to me, but was dumbfounded and couldn't find her voice. But I knew immediately, just from the look on her face what it was.

"You saw Mr. Felix, didn't you?" I said to her gently. All she could do was slowly nod her head a couple of times, still looking at me with eyes as wide as saucers, "And you didn't want to kick him accidentally, so you stopped and then realized he wasn't here anymore, didn't you, honey?"

Again, she nodded her head and slowly lowered her arms.

"It's okay, sweetie" I told her, "I see him, too, sometimes.

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