Glow Saint Ella

A friend of mine from college, dear sweet Stacie, has fought every day since I met her for the American Cancer Society, the Red Cross and numerous other non-profits.  She has a huge heart and a family filled with love and laughter.  Her son, Cade, is battling cancer and fighting like a champ.  He's so strong and tough and is full of smiles each and every day.  While we were in the hospital I'd see Stacie's post about treatments and know she was only a floor or a tower or a few rooms away, and somehow it made me feel like I wasn't alone.  

A mutual friend introduced Annie and I on the day of Lydia's heart surgery.  Almost every day from June 25th to August 15th, Annie and I smiled and said hello.  We didn't chat, we didn't get to know one another and we didn't meet each other's children, but we had a routine.  I know we smiled through sad days and tears and some days we didn't want to make eye contact, but we did it anyway.  Every day I think about Annie and her family that is battling an ugly disease and wants to take their precious Jonah home.  Somehow having that small connection made me feel like I wasn't alone.

Through Annie, I learned about Ella.  A beautiful little girl fighting hard every day to beat cancer.  Today Ella was given her angel wings and is safe in God's arms.  My thoughts are with their family and I'm praying they can find comfort in the memories they made with their sweet little girl.  I can't begin to imagine the heart ache.

Lydia doesn't have the same struggles as Cade and Jonah, and I haven't become the same kind of medical mama that Annie and Stacie have.  I don't understand their terminology and treatments.  Lydia doesn't have the same doctors.  But I understand what it feels like to not be able to take away all the pain, to not be able go through the surgeries and procedures for them, to watch as they are poked time and again for IVs and blood draws, to sit and wait for a report from the operating room.  My prayers are for them, their families, and their sweet lil' ones that are the strongest people we've ever known.  They are our heroes.