

Of all the cats I've known and loved, Simba is the one who holds the most affection. I lived in South Australia back then. We bought our Siamese kitten from a breeder and he grew to be strong, proud and loving. He moved with us to the country after my first husband's nervous breakdown and he adapted well. My last memory of him lingers. He stood on my foot in his usual expression of love and, while I reached down from my sitting position, he gripped my wrist in his teeth in a gentle hold. Treated me like a cat, I guess.

The memory lingers after 40 years. If love never dies, where is Simba now? I like to think he's waiting in heaven to greet me along with all the other animals I've loved.
We know so little about what happens to the spirit after our body withers. Faith holds some of us in a strong grip. Beliefs have changed over millennia. The ancients worshiped their ancestors. Today, we toss the elderly aside as having little value. Science questions everything and doubts those ideas which cannot be proved.