An excerpt from "Sweet Flower: The Short Life of Our Christmas Hamster," by Julie Stensland
Santa brought quite a precious hamster to my daughter for Christmas. We bought a book on hamsters and researched habits and do's and don'ts on the Internet. A clean safe cage and a variety of toys and snacks were provided. She was curious, active and enjoyed time outside the cage, too.
So what happened? Well, we don't know. We have no idea how old the hamster was when it was delivered, so it could have been natural death.
What is heartbreaking is that Santa brought her. "Why would Santa bring me a pet that was going to die right away?" This was the first question and a very good one. Without even a pause, my husband explained that Santa may have needed a good home for Flower over the holiday and thought we would be the perfect family for her to live her final days with.
We removed the cage from the room. My husband and kids hope it will house another hamster. I think we need a little bit of time to be sure we are ready for this. For now, it is time to mourn the loss of our sweet Flower.
Click here to read the full post.
Other posts from our local Parents Panel:
- Ode to the Garbage Man
- Children should live the dream but remember the nightmare
- Character matters most
- A funny thing happened on New Year's Day
- New year, new attitude
- Confessions of a preschool dropout
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