DEAR ABBY: Thank you for printing the letter about the reincarnated rabbit, "Blossom." It has been years since I had such a good laugh. I had heard the tale before and knew it was a joke. I'm glad you were not taken in.

It reminded me of a true incident that happened in our household many years ago. My brother, Jack, had two pet green anole lizards. One day I came home from school before he did and found my cat, Yoda, in the lizard tank. I was horrified to find only one lizard.

I begged my mom to lend me the car and off to the pet store I went. When Jack came home, he found two green lizards, and one with a half-chewed-off tail in the tank. (I guess it been hiding under the rock.) Jack was old enough to know how lizards have babies, so he was confused as to how the third lizard arrived. Caught in the act of replacement, I had to 'fess up. Jack was furious at Yoda, but happy to have an additional pet lizard.

We still laugh about the incident. -- KIM IN MASSACHUSETTS

DEAR KIM: I looked up the word "anole" and my Webster's dictionary defined it as "any of a genus of arboreal American lizards (as the American chameleon) that have ... the ability to change color." It reminded me of a story I heard years ago (probably apocryphal) about a woman whose pet chameleon died after she placed it on a piece of cloth that was plaid.

The letter about "Blossom" brought back memories from another reader, too. Read on:

DEAR ABBY: While the letter about Blossom was funny, I have a similar incident that is true. When I was 15, I adopted a cat from the S.P.C.A. I named him Elvis, and he instantly became part of the family. On Aug. 16, 2002 (the 25th anniversary of the death of the real king), my Elvis disappeared. He had missed his supper, which was unusual, so a friend and I went looking for him. We didn't find him, but after my friend left to go home, he called and said he had seen a cat up the street that looked like Elvis, dead in the road.

My dad and I took the truck, and sure enough, there lay a gray-and-white striped tabby cat. After three hours of mourning and crying in the driveway, we buried him with some of his favorite toys.

The next morning I woke up with my eyes still swollen from crying and looked out the back door. There lay Elvis sunning himself. After a moment of thoughts flashing through my head of Elvis unburying himself, I ran outside to make sure it was my cat. It was.

A few months later, while attending a neighborhood watch meeting, a neighbor mentioned that her cat had gone missing. He, too, was a gray striped tabby -- identical to my Elvis.

I think sometimes God lets us know how it would feel to be without something we love without actually taking it away, to teach us to be more grateful. -- THE KING LIVES ON, MIDLAND, TEXAS

DEAR K.L.O.: Perhaps. Thank you for the timely reminder that we should count our blessings.

CONFIDENTIAL TO KANSAS CITY KITTY: Dry your tears and count your blessings. Better to have loved and lost than to have spent your entire life hitched to a tomcat who's always on the prowl.

For everything you need to know about wedding planning, order "How to Have a Lovely Wedding." Send a business-size, self-addressed envelope, plus check or money order for $5 (U.S. funds only) to: Dear Abby, Wedding Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. (Postage is included.)

DEAR ABBY: My husband, "Rick," spent a year in Iraq. He has been home for 3 1/2 months. Before his return, the Army gave out a lot of information for us about what to expect upon his arrival -- how he might act, how the kids might react. None of it seems to have helped me.

Rick has had no trouble adjusting to being home. He has experienced no serious side effects from being there. The problem is me.

While Rick was gone, I did everything. I took care of our little boy, ran the house -- handled everything. Now that Rick is home, I'm having a hard time relearning how to share MY child and MY house with him. Yes, Abby, I know it's his baby and his house, too.

Rick's deployment was the first time I had ever lived by myself -- and I liked it. Now it seems that everything he does is wrong. Things that never used to bother me set me off now. I have gone from being a laid-back, patient person to a ranting, raving she-devil. Rick loads the dishwasher wrong and puts the toilet paper in backward; he drives wrong. Everything he does is wrong, because he does it differently than I do.

What's wrong with me? I know I'm acting like a lunatic. I love my husband very much and don't want to act this way. I want our marriage to be successful and happy. What can I do? -- ARMY WIFE IN NORTH CAROLINA

DEAR ARMY WIFE: There is nothing "wrong" with you. You are not the only wife who has felt this way. What the Army failed to tell you is that there's a period of readjustment not only for the returning soldier, but also for the spouse who was left behind. The solution lies in communicating your feelings before you explode.

The two of you must learn how to communicate effectively again. The secret is compromise. Taking time for just the two of you to be together would also be a giant step in the right direction. Both of you have changed during his deployment. If that doesn't improve the situation, marriage counseling should be your next step.

Keep in mind that you are among the lucky ones. Not everyone has been so fortunate as to have their loved ones return home.

DEAR ABBY: About a year ago, a friend of mine passed away. His funeral was more than 1,000 miles away. Because I didn't have much money, another friend called her best friend from high school and asked him to let me stay with him while I attended the funeral.

As a thank-you for his hospitality, I insisted on cooking for him my last night there. (He survived on frozen pizza!) We ate together, and at the end of the meal, he begged me not to leave yet. He had fallen in love with me, and I with him in the short time there! I changed my travel plans, and now a year later, we're engaged.

When people see that we're engaged, we always get asked, "How did you meet?" I tell them it was through a friend, but some people insist on hearing the whole story. Should we make something up? I can't tell people that I met him because of my friend's funeral! -- J.H. IN YONKERS

DEAR J.H.: Why not? It's a wonderful story. Out of sadness came joy; out of death came life. I consider your love story to be an affirmation -- and so should you.

For an excellent guide to becoming a better conversationalist and a more attractive person, order "How to Be Popular." Send a business-size, self-addressed envelope, plus check or money order for $5 (U.S. funds only) to: Dear Abby Popularity Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. (Postage is included.)

DEAR ABBY: I have been married to "Sam" for 20 years. He is a wonderful husband and provider. When I married Sam, we had nothing; now we have a home and rental properties.

My family seems to be jealous of the financial success we have achieved. My siblings make snide comments and have pulled away.

It came to a head the other night when my youngest sister announced to the family that I had gone online and anonymously threatened her family. Abby, I have never been anything but kind to them. They have an open invitation to visit our home and swim, and I have even bought her children clothing and shoes when she was unable to.

I don't understand this, and I'm very hurt. Please help me to put this in perspective, because I am fully aware that money cannot buy happiness -- happiness comes from family and loved ones. -- WRONGLY ACCUSED IN ARKANSAS

DEAR WRONGLY ACCUSED: Your sister may be jealous, may have mental problems -- or may just have a need to be the center of attention. Since you have been generous with her, it may be time to realize that loving relationships are reciprocal. If your relatives are put off by what you and your husband have accomplished, the problem is really theirs, and you can't fix it.

P.S. If your sister did, in fact, receive a threatening e-mail, rather than accusing you, she should have informed the police.

DEAR ABBY: I am 16 and have just started my junior year in high school. Last spring, I started dating "Rick," a guy in my class. After six weeks, he dropped me and started dating a popular girl. He never said it was over or gave me a reason for dumping me. He just stopped calling, wouldn't talk to me and wouldn't answer my phone calls. I was devastated.

Now that school has started again, I see Rick in the halls. I told him I still love him and would do anything to get back the way we were, and he was very rude. I know I need to move on, but I can't get him out of my heart. Please help. -- STUCK IN ST. LOUIS

DEAR STUCK: Part of your problem may be that you didn't have "closure" when the relationship with Rick was over. For him to have dropped you the way he did was cruel. Perhaps this will help you:

I recently attended a conference where a man approached me and stuck out his hand. He said he wanted to thank me for some advice I had given him years ago. Like you, he was having difficulty moving on after a romance had ended. At the time, I told him that he should pretend that his love object had tragically dropped dead. (It happens!) I said that although the person might still be alive, their romance WAS dead, and so were any illusions he had about the person. I also advised him that if he began to obsess again, he should remind himself out loud that he was only playing "old tapes" in his head and to change the channel.

He told me that my advice hadn't been easy to follow, but it had worked for him then and several times subsequently. (I have used the technique myself, and it worked for me.) Give it a try.

CONFIDENTIAL TO ASPIRING ACTRESS IN ACTON, CALIF.: Remember that "average" is as close to the bottom as it is to the top. There's a show business axiom: "A person's career usually lasts as long as the time spent preparing for it." So don't settle for less than your potential; always keep striving for the best.

For everything you need to know about wedding planning, order "How to Have a Lovely Wedding." Send a business-size, self-addressed envelope, plus check or money order for $5 (U.S. funds only) to: Dear Abby, Wedding Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. (Postage is included.)