Hello Brownsville...again!

I'm back in Brownsville, but now I'm 28 so it's going to be really different this time. I've been so excited about my birthday, and was so thankful when so many of my amazing friends sent me happy wishes. I love facebook...with hundreds of friends and family stopping in to say hello, it just reminded me how much I love my life. It's amazing how the little things can really mean so much.

I was really reminded of that today. A dear friend of mine's mother just lost her battle with cancer a few days ago. I've met and spent time with her mom maybe 10 times. She always made me laugh, and had such a wonderful sense of humor. In October, she had to have surgery. Being Breast Cancer Awareness month, there was an abundance of pink ribbon paraphernalia in the stores, so I stopped to pick up some cookies that came with a little pink bracelet, ala LiveStrong style. I haven't thought much of it...she thanked me for the cookies the next time I saw her and that was that. Well today my friend called me and said that when she went to dress her mother from the funeral today, she realized that her mom has worn that bracelet since that day and would be buried in it tomorrow.

This story isn't an attempt to self horn toot, it just is a reminder to me that sometimes we do something so small...something we think no one will notice or care much about. But that small thing can stay with a person for a lifetime. I think about how many people I encounter on a give day and how the smallest thing someone says can affect my day or week or life. Watching myriad stories on the news about bullying, verbal abuse based on race and sexual orientation, and parental abuse just pull at my heart. Love each other. Do what you can. Be careful what you say. Share joy. Glow.

Thank you all for the love you've given me. I hope that I am woman enough to give it back to you.