DEAR ABBY: I recently purchased a "mother's ring" for my mother and am having all of my siblings' stones added to it. However, last Thanksgiving, my brother, the baby of the family, passed away unexpectedly.
Should I still add his birthstone to the ring, or just the survivors'? Your thoughts, please. -- TORN IN TENNESSEE
DEAR TORN: By all means, add your brother's birthstone to the ring. To do otherwise would imply that he never existed. Please believe me when I say that when your mother looks at the ring, your brother's stone will remind her of the precious time she had with him. What would make her sad would be knowing that one stone was missing.