DEAR HARRIETTE: I am a single mother. My son is in kindergarten and begged me for a year to get him a pet. I held off in the hopes that he would forget or lose interest. When I suggested getting a fish, he hated the idea and said that he wanted a hamster. Exhausted from this argument, I bought him a tiny hamster. Ten days ago, he came up to me with the hamster's ball. It was popped open, and the hamster was missing. My son asked me where Buddy went, and I told him Buddy is visiting his family for a little while. As my son slept, I searched and searched for the hamster, but it is completely gone. It's been lost for 10 days now, and I doubt it is alive.
My son has been asking less frequently about the hamster, which leaves me with a dilemma: Do I tell my son that his hamster ran away and has died, or do I continue to tell him white lies until he forgets about his pet? -- Bye-Bye, Hamster, Jackson, Mississippi
DEAR BYE-BYE, HAMSTER: Stop lying. Children must learn about life and death, too. Children who have pets naturally learn about the cycle of life. If your son mentions the hamster again, tell him what you suspect. You could also simply get a new one and introduce your son to his new pet. The time will come to talk about death.
(Lifestylist and author Harriette Cole is president and creative director of Harriette Cole Media. You can send questions to askharriette@harriettecole.com or c/o Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)