24 Comments
User's avatar
Sam Weerawardane's avatar

So sorry for your loss, John. It’s lovely to see how your cats have informed your character development – I’m going to keep this in mind for my own work too so thank you for sharing. We’ve only ever had dogs which explains why my characters are so obvious :)

Expand full comment
Ina Steinman's avatar

Awww, Pigeon. Sorry to hear. ♥️ Actual tears when I told O.

Expand full comment
Jessica Jolicoeur's avatar

I'm really sorry for your loss and I know how hard it is to lose a beloved pet I've had seven cats in my life and three dogs pass away and five horses including a myriad of pet rats and hamsters so I hear your pain. It does get better.

Expand full comment
Stef C's avatar

I’m so sorry Jon. Pigeon was such a special one 💜💜💜

Expand full comment
Sarah Lovell's avatar

So sorry to hear about the loos of your cats. It’s always so hard to lose a pet ❤️

Expand full comment
Shachi Kale's avatar

So sorry about both Cleo and Pigeon. They don’t need much or do much but our lives feel empty without them. ✨ thank you for sharing your thoughts about how they informed your art and your thoughts about emotion and art.

Expand full comment
John Martz's avatar

So sorry to hear this, Jon! ❤️

Expand full comment
Kim Wyman's avatar

I'm so sorry. If you have a dog, I'm sure they're with you in your grief. There are 2 children's books II give to the kids in my life when their first pet dies - either Dog Heaven or Cat Heaven.

Expand full comment
Ramona Davey AKA Mo's avatar

Losing a cat is the hardest for all the reasons you said. And I love the name Pigeon!

Expand full comment
Rachel Michelle Wilson's avatar

Thanks for sharing this moment of grief and the gifts your cat has given you and your work.

Expand full comment
Joy's avatar

I’m so sorry for your loss, Jon. Thank you for the this thoughtful video—so many truths about life and art.

Expand full comment
Sam's avatar

So sorry your cat died Jon, it’s always so sad. Thanks for sharing the bumble bee story, I remember one time putting my cat Toffee in a dolls pram and her probably looking very similar- our schnauzer Sidney on the other hand seemed very happy being pushed around the garden in a bonnet. Stevie Smith’s poem The Galloping Cat is good on prickly cats.

Expand full comment
Jane Stephens Rosenthal Cooke's avatar

I am so sorry. Our cat (my soul cat) died a year ago in February almost 10 years to the day I met her and she outlived her polysistic kidney diagnosis by 8 years. Pretty incredible. She was absolutely sublime changed my life and never naming a cat after a French literary character again. Madame Bovary she lived up to her name indeed. Thank you for sharing your heart with us. I do believe they are the closest creatures to god if there was one. Holding your heart.

Expand full comment
Ursula Sturgeon's avatar

i’m so sorry about pigeon, she sounds like she was such a wonderful animal.

my soul cat passed away earlier this month and it’s been hard for me to return to writing since, which has been really frustrating but also mysterious for me because this was the summer i decided “right, i’m going to do it, i’m going to Write and Be Productive and Finish Drafts” (after multiple previous plans fell through) and then that ended up not really shaking out. and a family cat is having a sharp neurological decline and she’ll likely pass away very soon too.

maybe i’ll understand how to just clench my teeth about it and keep being productive once i’m a more experienced writer (once i’m older, or published, or whatever) but i don’t know. it’s like she hid away my motivation somewhere right before she went. and with most dead people you can at least sort of imagine what they’d say to you and what advice (or not) they’d give, ratatoullie-style, but you can’t really do that with a cat.

i don’t entirely know where i’m going with this except this video really helped me right now in a way i can’t entirely describe. thank you jon

Expand full comment
Billustrated's avatar

So sad for your loss. Thank you for sharing your perspective on this, a lot of interesting things to ponder.

Expand full comment
Gavin Shuker's avatar

I am sorry for your loss.

Expand full comment