Barbara Gustafson wrote
>I too was at the Symposium <snip>  What struck me... right to the heart,
>and what makes me proud to be a member of such a close knit and caring
>community is the speed at which people responded to a potential crisis
>involving ferrets....
>
>To me that speaks of a caring and compassion that far outweighs any
>misunderstandings in communication, personal feelings or politics involved
>and so I applaud these people for their commitment to what really
>matters.... THE FERRETS.
 
This was one of the main goals of the Symposium, to foster communication
and understanding between ferret lovers, outside the petty politics and
personality clashes that so often have us at odds with each other.
 
Some people just don't get along.  Even our ferrets show us that: my
Cookie and Andi mistrust each other, and I know squabbles will break out
on a regular basis.  That does not mean they are not both loving ferrets,
I just know I have to watch them carefully to defuse tense situations.
And sometimes they even surprise me when I find them cuddled up together
napping.
 
People are no different.  They mistrust, they argue, they get into
knock-down drag-out fights.  But that does not mean they are not good
loving people.  And it does not mean they cannot get along enough to work
for a common goal.  We all have to watch out for the tense situations that
arise between us.  ALL of us can be guilty of it--even my easy-going
Buttons gets testy sometimes.  We must learn to work to defuse these
situations rather than trying to "win" the battle.  Then we can get on
with the business of making life better for our beloved Fuzzy Ones.
 
Linda Iroff
Oberlin OH
[Posted in FML issue 3697]