Dear Tara & Charlie, It's me, Pie. Tara at least knows who I am, and Charlie, well, I'd like to introduce myself. My name is Pie O' Pah, and at one time I lived not too far from where you guys are, and I had a good long seven years with my mum before coming here. For a time I enjoying visiting with all of my brothers, sisters, and grandparents both fuzzy and non-fuzzy and then one day I gathered up the courage to apply to be a Bridge Greeter. Took me awhile, but the Big Guy finally found me worthy and I've been working as an official greeter for a few years now. I guess you could say I'm somewhere around the middle of the journey that each fuzzit takes from your earthly play ground to where I live at the Rainbow Bridge. First, when a ferret is ready to move on, they can see Angels, all kinds of Angels, they are hooman and fuzzit alike, they are of Comfort and of Guidance and of Love, you can't see them because it is not yet your time, but I bet you can feel them around you. They whisper to you, and sometimes you can feel like a slight tickle in your ear, and it's a small, tiny voice that tells you - "No matter what, have faith that things will work out as they should." I know that your will is that we stay with you and have long, healthy lifetime, but sometimes the Big Guy has other purposes for us that we may not understand right away, and sometimes it could be that he has seen that we have been through enough, and are ready to be at peace and no longer are ill or lingering in pain. On our way to the Bridge we take a very private journey, one that shows us the very best parts of our lives. Like when we first came home, and knew it was forever. Cuddling with you, falling asleep in your arms, being spoiled rotten, but most of all being loved and cherished - oh, and of course all of our favorite treats and toys! Now down to the truth of this letter/greeting. I know this means that Chee Choo has left, but please keep in mind it also means that I've found what you have only temporary lost, and in time you *will* see him again, but you'll have to wait bit for that, you both ( including Bandit & Gracie Mae) have still have a lot of living to do! There is so much I could say about Chee Choo, but even more my mum could say because she knew him almost as well as you did. He was handsome, and sweet, and had the largest, most beautiful dark eyes she'd ever seen! He loved to cuddle and play and was very good at posing for pictures, especially for Bee. He could also get into EVERYTHING with little or no effort at all, but most especially he could easily get inside of your heart. He came into your life when you least expected it and while I know you have always been a single or maybe a two fuzzit family, Chee Choo busted all of those rules and made you give into ferret math - and you did so very well! He taught you that ferret math also means double, triple, quadruple and fivepul the fun and enjoyment you gained as well. There is nothing better then a huge business of fuzz to enjoy and kiss and hug and cuddle with and give treats too and play "Guess which piece of furniture I'm hiding in!" and "Who can get up the stairs faster then mama?", or how about "Whose under the stove now?" There was nothing this little boy could not accomplish, and even blocking doors and cabinets could not stop this tenacious fuzzy boy from getting into them. I even bet, given time, he would have figured out how to open up hooman doors with his impressive mind set. He was also a huge pig when it came to Ferretone, why he'd speedly gulp down his just so he could steal from everyone else's treat bowl - now that's a greedy little fuzzit if ever I knew one, with the exception of a certain D.E.W. Peppermint Patty thief all we know and love. There are many thing I could say about Chee Choo, but what I could never say is that that all of his needs were seen too. You did everything possible to make certain that he would be OK, Grey Hospital did as well as the wonderful people over at the UGA Vet College. he had so many people pulling and praying for him, that it was as if he was swathed in the very best of care as well as the very best of love from one and all. Even I was pulling for him too, I wanted him to make a full recovery and come home and be his joyful, fuzzy self, but it was his time to come home, and so he did. Now you must imagine this, I hear a knocking on my door, and I'm thinking, it's Hobbes, yet when I open my door I find Princess standing there outside. She has on this pretty pink feather boa and a tiny, sparkly tiara - as if she would show up at my door any other way, and she huffed at me, breezed on past with her entourage of fuzzit's - Ricky, Ellis, Slinky, Bandit, and quite a few others you would recognize as belonging to my mum - and she put on her airs, and she simply stated that she was ready to be on her way to the Bridge and I best be ready too, because she was gonna make her mama proud by being there *just* for Chee Choo - so you can read, she is just as bossy here as she was there, and hopefully that will help let you know that no matter where we are we are still the same - in Princesses case, she still persnickety and BOSSY. As you know there is NO arguing with Princess. So I grabbed my bottle of Ferretone (so I could share with Chee Choo) and off we went, but not running as we usually do, but instead by this fancy thing she referred too as "her litter". Ever see one of those? It was all curtained in gossamer pink and white fabrics, and the couch we climbed onto was a soft, squishy, pink thing, and there were these four BEEFY fuzzit's waiting on the end of the two poles which held the thing suspended between them, there were even a delicate set of steps we climbed to get into the thing. I felt kinda weird being in all that pink, fru-fru stuff, but I wasn't going to say a thing about it, would you? The beefy fuzzit's moved so smoothly across the landscape, I watched as your sweet little girl held court. She talked about who was going to do what and what we would say and that she would be the first to greet and welcome him, and I just kept my mouth shut. Like I wanted to be hissed at right? When we got there, I was surprised at how the Bridge looked. It was barely visible, but for the fact that as the light reflected off of it, it appeared like rainbow colored water held in place by magic. There were these beautiful white tree's with deep crimson and burnt orange leaves on them, and the ground was covered in the same colorful leaves. We all disembarked from her Royal Majesties Litter and patiently waited on what was to come next. Princess walked around, making little noises here and there before pronouncing that everything was perfect. The she clapped her delicate, sable paws and a soft gold light appeared on the Bridge, there was a soft music lilting in the air, and then, in the midst of all this quiet beauty, Chee Choo arrived. He looked good, more then good, he looked soft, and fluffy and full of life and love. You and Charlie gave that to him, you gave him so many wonderful things, the best being your hearts. Princess did indeed greet him first. She kissed him, hugged him, and then said, tell me all about Charlie, is he taking good care of mama? Is she happy? I watch from here, but it's not nearly as good as being there, and Chee Choo filled her in, filled us all in really. He talked about how much fun he had being part of your life, that he was happy that he has you for a mom, because you always took such good care of him, and while he hated going to the vet so often, he knew that you did so because of your love and concern for him, but in the end, all that really, truly mattered to him, was that he was loved. It's true, all we really require is love. Unconditional, warm, happy, glowing love. He had that ..... he had you. I know I say it all the time, that one day you will see him again, you will see all of them, but it's more then words Tara, it's a promise. Chee Choo loves you, they all do, and so do I. And *I* promise to keep looking after them until you come home to us OK? In Love & In Comfort, Pie O' Pah [Posted in FML 7196]