To such people, I'd suggest they think of the three people they care most about in the world, and then imagine them all dying in front of you. Babies can't be replaced, but people in service-oriented businesses can. Thirty years ago, when my mother died, my father purchased cemetery lots and headstones for our entire family. Write to Abby. For a personal, unpublished reply, send a self-addressed, stamped envelope to Dear Abby, P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, Calif., 90069.
All correspondence is confidential.