I applaud Alexandra for her insights. Also, I would like to thank both her and Gordon for their grasp of the value of language and its ability to mitigate or instigate when used to those ends. You have both made me laugh and cry with your ferret stories, and ferret person sensitivities. I, too, have lost several souls close to me in the last five months, and understand the wisdom in refraining from platitudes during the grieving process. I believe that those of us who subject ourselves to the love of ferrets and other animals must know that to partake in the dance you cannot escape the pain. They simply do not live long enough. In the meantime, please, continue to sweeten these painful losses with your joyful renditions, it makes the grief bearable. Nancy Mitchell, Franktown, CO [Posted in FML 7421]