I know this will sound stupid, but yesterday was one of the saddest, or part of the saddest, days I have experienced, and all because of a little lizard named Kato. I know there are absolutely horrendous events (cancer in family member, loss of home/loved in disasters and war, loss of spouse, loss of child...) happening to thousands of people right now, and some of these people affected are even close to me--and I hurt terribly for all of them--much worse than the death of a pet. You must say: "A LIZARD?! A STUPID REPTILE?" "Get a life!" or "It's not even a pet you could hold and cuddle..." and maybe you are right. But when that little lizard died yesterday, suffering horribly, and my son is crying out to God not to let him die, saying he is sorry to Kato, sobbing, pleading that he be healed, stroking his heaving body and telling him it's ok, my heart felt like it was ripped out and stomped on. I cried and cried, too. I felt so helpless. I cannot stand it when my children hurt. I want to make the pain go away. I and Luke know God the Almighty and all-caring and all-compassionate has reasons for it all. I could probably name some. But all we felt then was raw pain. As my husband so aptly put it, "Death is horrible." It separates us from those we care about. Everything associated with that being reminds you of your loss. You can't see or touch or laugh with or talk to them again. You never will see them as they were, alive and vibrant. Many times the last we see of them is sick or in pain. The whole family loved Kato. How can we explain the affection we had for a lizard? That sentence even sounds dumb. Oh well. It brought us pleasure. He was a noble being, actually very regal. Luke took utmost care of him, constantly seeking information on how to better his terrarium and make his life more pleasant. We even took him to the vet ( a very, very, very rare occurrence in our home with a father who was brought up on a farm) two times. I think part of the extreme grief may be due to having just had a very long week of 15 people living in our house and constant comings and goings (most very pleasant). We were worn out, and emotionally, we were a bit ragged. Anyway, obviously, life goes on. It's "just a lizard," but as Tim said, "As lizards go, he was one of the good ones." Let us cherish all life, every day. Let us remember the impact we leave on people day to day. What impression do we leave? Are we the aroma of Christ? Will others know and mourn our loss because we affected them for eternity? And how can we help comfort those who are grieving and hurting? Just something to ponder. (I'm sure some of you will be commenting on the morbidity of my post, but death is a part of life!) I encourage you to be a life-giver today!