I knew something was wrong as soon as I saw the expression on my mamaw’s face. Let’s just say it didn’t exactly relate joy.

We had just pulled into the driveway after our week long trip to Florida. Our daughter Sara, who was 9 years old at this time, was showing Papaw all the treasures she had amassed at Sea World. That was when Mamaw whispered to Tim and myself, “I need you all to come down to the carport to look at something.”

Yep, this was not good.

Mamaw went straight to her outside refrigerator. I have noticed that most people who have gardens, also have a refrigerator outside. In this case, that was a good thing.

She clasped the freezer handle. “I didn’t know what else to do with it.” Then she opened the door and reached inside.

I was genuinely perplexed. In a way, I felt as if Mamaw was a magician and I was waiting to see what she was going to pull out of a hat. Let me say while it wasn’t a rabbit, it was very close to it.

What she pulled out was covered in tin foil and old bread wrappers. “It died the other day and I don’t know why. I fed and watered them every day you all were gone.”

My heart went into my throat. Sara had a couple of hamsters and we had asked Mamaw to tend to them for us. We lived next door, so I had no doubt she would take good care of them. She had a soft spot for small animals.

She handed it to Tim. “I didn’t know if Sara wanted to bury it or what. So, I made sure she could do what she wanted with it after she got back.”

Tim carefully took off the bread wrappers and peeled off the tin foil. In his hand laid Sara’s dead hamster.

I gasped, “Is it frozen?”

Tim tapped it against the side of the refrigerator. CLUNK. CLUNK. “Yep, it’s frozen alright. Completely solid.”

“What in the world is going on?” My mother asked as she walked up to us.

Mamaw recounted what had happened and Tim hit it against the refrigerator again. CLUNK. CLUNK.

“How about that? I’ve never seen a hamstercicle before.” My mother has always been quite the wit.

Even though it was funny in a very weird way, it was still Sara’s pet and we had to tell her it had died. I really dreaded it. It’s not easy to lose something you love. I still remember the pets that had died when I was a child.

After we told Sara, we showed her the hamstercicle. I could tell she was upset, but she didn’t cry. I think at that point she was overwhelmed from seeing her pet frozen solid. It’s not something you experience every day.

I explained to Sara that Mamaw had done nothing wrong and hamsters didn’t live too long anyway. Then I offered to buy her another one. So in a couple of days, mom and I took her to the pet store and let her pick out another hamster. She did and was very excited about it.

As we were driving back home, my mom asked, “What are you going to name this one?”

“CanBe,” Sara answered.

“I like that name,” I told her. I was relieved that she was moving on so well. “How did you think of that one?”

“Can be replaced,” she answered without any hesitation.

Needless to say, I had no more worries about her missing her old hamster.

Many things can be replaced, but we human beings are a special bunch.

“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” Genesis 1:27 (KJV)

Of all of His creation, we alone are made in His image. We hold a special place in His heart; each and every one of us. He will never forget that love or replace it with someone or something else.

“Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.” Isaiah 49:16 (KJV)