Gleason and Making a Difference

Here's some more pictures of Gleason. Alexann didn't make it, but Gleason worked really hard to make her comfy and happy. He loved her so much that he even cried after she died. He made a difference to Alexann, just like Alexann made a difference to her people. Here's another story on Gleason. Just paste the link and you'll go right there:

http://www.mailtribune.com/archive/2005/0316/local/stories/05local.htm

My mom says that dying is something all living things do. I'm trying to understand because that's what happened to my Aunt Rose and now Mom has her ashes in a box in the hutch in the kitchen, Rose's favorite place. She left this world about seven days before Mom adopted me.

Dying isn't something I think about a lot. It's like first, you're not here. Then, all of a sudden, you are. Then you're not anymore, but BECAUSE you WERE here, you made a difference to the people that are STILL here or will BE here someday. So the difference I want to make is that people will smile when they think about MEEEE, Mary-Margaret O'Brien.

I'll probably never be a Doctor Dog like Gleason, or a Lassie dog. Every time I try to get Mom's attention by wurrrrrrring and doing a little dance, she says "Oh, Lassie, is Timmy in the well again?" (whatever THAT means). I want to be like my Aunt Rose. She was pretty special, and she still makes people smile when they think about her. Mom says she was soft, gentle, and always knew when someone needed her services. That's the difference I want to make.

Mom says that she thinks everybody should decide what kind of difference they want to make in the world, and how they want to be remembered after they're gone. I know my mom has helped put families and friends back together when they lost each other for a while. She does a lot of other stuff that seems to make people happy, too. I think that she wants people to smile when they remember her, same as me.

I'm going to think about how I can make a difference today. Don't worry. I'm not going to play Easter Bunny again. :o)

Love, Mary-Margaret