Amy said that the memories about her gerbils reminded her of another growing up time in her life. She had a hamster that she just loved and he became sick. Now, Dr Randle lived across the street and was a dear friend and he tried to treat it for her. Finally the hamster (I don't remember his name) got so sick that his heart stopped and she ran across the street with him and Dr Randle said to her, "Amy, if I give him CPR and try to restart his life, he may not live or he may live and have someting wrong with him. Now, it is your decision. Do you understand your choices?"(That mey not be his exact words or even the exact situation, but it was life and death). I wanted to smack him...how dare he put that decision on her shoulders! But then he gently told her she only had a few seconds to decide and she finally told him to let the hamster die. Wow!! We had a little funeral. That was a big deal for a kid and she grieved and lived over it. But it was a big lesson for her.
As she said, "I'm amazed I passed my psych exam for the Presbytery." I guess we are resiliant people.