Tribute to "Meme"

This is my "companion animal" Mimi.

Firstly, let me explain that I have what some people would call "strange" ideas about animals. Specifically, I don't believe that "humans" are "more evolved" or superior to "animals" in any meaningful way. Firstly, to paraphrase Steven Jay Gould I believe that Meme represents an ideal and brilliant evolutionary solution to the problem of being a hamster-- no less than I do for the problem of being human. But more importantly, I don't see how her small size or lack of "higher thinking" would lessen the size of her "peep hole" into experience. And to go even further, I strongly suspect that in some real meaningful ways most animals may be supperior to humans despite their inability to perform well on standard IQ tests. Adolf Hitler was a particulary "intelligent" man, but I've never known of a hamster to to do the things that he did....

Sadly, Mimi has hamster breast cancer, which is not uncommon or unexpected for a hamster of her years.... It has been interesting knowing her, because when we met her, she felt like the baby, and we like her parents. But in her brief years, she has taken on a a sort of wisdom and dignity that I as yet lack. And I believe that I have learned something about the meaning of gentleness, and of many other things, because I have known her.

And that's all I'm going to say about that.