As those of you who have been following know, I have had a painful run with cat illnesses and deaths. On the day that I lost my sweet Martin, I noticed that my 1 year old kitten was sick. After two weeks of testing, treatment and drugs, he deteriorating so terribly that he couldn't function anymore. I hadn't even yet had a chance to mourn Martin's death and there I was saying goodbye to baby Henry. As any of you who have been through this know, the exit from the vet is an empty and painful experience. You walk in with your baby and leave with an empty crate.

There I was again, walking out when standing at the entrance in front of the counter was a man wearing a bright, orange Gators polo. Naturally, without even thinking about it, I walked out the door while saying, "Go Gators" which was, of course, answered with a big smile and, "Go Gators." Behind him was the tech who yelled, "Oh my God! Even in a time like this you people say, "Go Gators"? My response as I was walking away, was "Always".  I think he was saying something similar.

Who knew that the Gator Nation's habitual need to notice one another and acknowledge how incredible it is to be a Gator could help, even if for a moment, at such a horrible time? Corny? Yea, maybe. Ridiculous to others, like dim canes fans? Nah. Never. I love it! I just never knew how truly amazing it is that we have something so incredibly special.