Oh, this is an exquisite story, @agmoore. It is a perfect example of flash fiction, with the right mix of mood and tension, a conflict and a story arc. I love the similarities and differences between the man whose room she cleans and the fox. In the case of the bedridden man, she is helpless and a bystander to his pain, but with the fox she can fully experience her sadness and can do something to reconcile what she feels. Perhaps the tears are not just for the fox. Well done!