Ghost the Gerbil

We have a crisis at home. One of our gerbils, Ghost, is on the brink of death. My daughter, the kind-hearted sweet young girl she has grown up to be is taking it hard. I spoke to her on the phone this morning and she is very sad. She has Ghost wrapped in a cloth and is holding her. She has told me that she has a Cheerio that Ghost took a bite out of, a tissue that she used to pick up her poops, the cloth she is holding her in, and some gerbil hairs in a plastic bag that she wants to keep to remember her by. It is going to be a long day for her (and my wife). My son was still asleep when I called so he doesn't know yet. I don't think he'll take it as hard as my daughter but Ghost is his gerbil so it won't be easy.

Before I left the house this morning I checked on Ghost and she wasn't moving too much. The first thought that went through my head was to pull a "Dwight" and put Ghost in the freezer and leave a goodbye note on the cage to my kids from Ghost. Then I remembered that my daughter is ten and knows that gerbils can't write. To bad because the note would have been in sloppy gerbil writing with a little paw print next to the signature. Cute, huh?

While talking to my daughter about Ghost I told her that we could make a nice coffin for her and bury her in the yard. She was quick to list her desires for the burial. One, we couldn't bury Ghost in the woods as the raccoons would desecrate her grave. Two, we are to bury her under the rose bushes in the front yard so the kids always know where she is. Three, we can't ever move. There you have it. I guess we will live there forever to watch over the grave of our beloved Ghost.