It is a tradition in Australia to throw a party on your 21st birthday. So we thought it would only be appropriate that we throw a party in April when our cat, Simba, turns 21. We were going to invite the neighbours and friends who looked after him over the years and we’d wear silly hats and sing songs. We wanted to celebrate the life of the family pet who gave us so much joy for 21 years.

We won’t be throwing that party. Simba took his last breath today. His bad kidneys and arthritis finally got the best of him and we could tell from the withdrawn look on his face that he wanted to go.

When Padma and I arrived in South Australia in April of 1995, we wanted to settle down somewhat permanently. And permanency meant that we could finally have a cat as a pet. Shortly after we arrived we went to the pet store and picked two siblings from a recent litter – one for each of the two boys, Josh and Xander. The boys were really into The Lion King so it was only natural that they would name their cats, Simba and Nala.

Nala wasn’t with us for long. Within her first year she was bitten by a venomous brown snake in our yard. She took her last breath in Padma’s arms just as we arrived at the vet at two in the morning.

But Simba lived long and lived a good life. He moved into our home on Emmett Road with us 20 years ago. He has always been here when we’ve arrived home.

Well, except for one night. Simba wasn’t awaiting us one night, nor the next. Padma and I got very worried. I called and called him but received no answer. I went to the bottom of the property and called into the paddock. It was windy but I thought I heard a distant ‘meow’. I scaled the fence and kept calling and the meows grew louder. Finally I found Simba high in a gum tree. I shouted across the paddock to Padma, ‘Get Bob’s (our neighbour) ladder. GET BOB’S LADDER!’ After a long time Padma arrived with Bob who complained about trekking across the paddock carrying a ladder to rescue the ‘bloody cat’. We loved Bob and knew he would always help out when an animal was involved. I climbed the ladder but couldn’t reach. So then Bob climbed the ladder and I then climbed over Bob and got on his shoulders – the extra two metres was just enough so I could pull Simba from the tree. The was the only time in nearly 21 years that Simba wasn’t home to greet us.

For the past 11 years I’ve worked at home alone … well, not alone because Simba would sleep and snore on my desk and keep me company. I believe I would speak more to Simba during the day than to my clients. He was my best mate and I appreciated his company so much.

Simba has been a member of our family longer than Joseph has. On the day we brought Joseph home from hospital, Simba came up to inspect him and must have realised that he would no longer be the centre of attention in the family. Life without Simba is a unknown concept for Joe.

There are some cats who want nothing to do with humans … and then there is Simba. He was always on the lookout for someone who would scratch him under the chin. I often said that I could measure a micro-second because that was the time between the moment my bum hit the couch and the moment when Simba would jump on my lap. I didn’t have a monopoly on Simba though. He liked everyone but tradesmen and would always join us for a dinner party.

I’ve never known a cat to purr as loudly and as frequently as Simba. When I first saw him in that pet store I picked him up and rubbed his fat tummy. He purred and purred. A few years later, he lay on the living room floor, paralysed from a brown snake bite. I picked him up and as he fought for his life he purred and purred. And as Joseph and I pet him as he took his last breath he was purring.

We buried Simba in his old tattered cat bed next to his sister Nala on the rise overlooking the house. If I ever feel the earth rumble, I’ll know it’s my old mate purring away.

Simba was an extraordinary cat who touched the lives of so many people who came to visit us or who would take care of him while we were away. I’ve collected a few photos of him in this album which is also our family history in South Australia so we can celebrate his life and remember how important our family pets can be to us and what profound love and joy they can bring to us.