It was summertime, and I was right in the middle of a fall.
Yes, I was falling in love with the guy of my dreams, and we were going to dance happily into eternity together! Then he met my cat.
Sylvester, my 13-year-old orange tabby, was the special "man" in my life before this new guy came on the scene.
Sylvester, or "Sly" for short, had become a very special and important part of my life, and I considered him family.
Sly and I enjoy romps through the local park (Sly goes on walks without a leash), and look forward to languid evenings where Sly gets lots of love, while purring on my lap.
Sly had crawled into my heart fair and square, and I was excited for my guy to meet him.
After all, this new relationship was perfect, and Sylvester was just one more good part of life to include in all that perfection.
But there was one small, itty-bitty problem.
My boyfriend was allergic to cats.
When pushed, my boyfriend did not really care for them.
Sleeping over was a challenge and even allergy pills didn't help much.
There didn't seem to be many choices for fixing the problem.
Having a good relationship would have meant giving up Sly.
That was something I couldn't bare to think of.
What do you do when your guy and cat do not mesh? This may be hard to hear, but I cannot be more frank: If your guy and you aren't on the same page about kitty, it may not be about your furry family member at all.
In my experience, it had to do with differing values.
Overtime, no relationship can sustain without shared values.
Letting go is hard, but it's harder to stay in the wrong relationship.
Yep, the guy and I went kaput.
I learned that he didn't value the way I show care for another being, and it revealed a lot about what we valued in a relationship.
Although it was very hard at the time, it has been a valuable lesson.
But there's a happy ending to this story.
I did find someone who values what I value.
He also found happiness and joy in similar places as I did, and he liked Sylvester.
More importantly, he liked that I loved Sly.
Today, Sly and I have added to our family.
This man has now become my husband, and has come to love Sylvester almost as much as I do.
We three are a happy family unit.
Letting go can be hard, and many times, it doesn't need to come to that.
Through patience and communication, many things can be worked out in a relationship, including how to get along with your kitty.
But if you find yourself in a similar situation, I promise, you are making room for something better!