"I was here"

So, I have an image today that has been carrying me through a weekend where we lost two of our Little Pink moms to their battle with breast cancer.  We also lost 2 moms in December and 6 last year.  Each a beautiful woman taken away at exactly the moment that God designed, but always a moment that we feel is too early.  All of these women left an indelible mark on the world, on my heart, and the hearts of so many others.

I have people who ask me if dealing with this side of Little Pink is too much to take.  They often times refer to it as the "down side" to the work that we do.    Without LPHOH, I never would have met these women, their families, seen the love that they carry for their children, seen their hope for a miracle to keep them here, seen the determination to try something new, seen their faith deepen, or the attitude of "the hell with cancer, I am here to live".  

So I say all of that, but I still cry. I cry for the people that are left behind. I cry for the days that will be missed in the lives of their children.   I cry that the people they love have lost the only person that loves them the way that they did.

But I still find myself with the ability to rejoice.  I rejoice in the days that they got to hold hands with the love of their life. I rejoice in the sweet giggles shared as a wave came to shore and they couldn't run fast enough to either go towards it or away from it. I rejoice that they are free from pain. I rejoice in knowing that these women are in God's loving embrace.

And the image that has been carrying me through is my dad, waiting in heaven to give each of them a big hug.   My dad died two years ago right before Little Pink started, but he was the business brains behind the whole organization.  I am holding onto the image that he welcomes each one of our women home with a big "little pink hug in heaven".

All of these women lived in a way that showed others exactly who they were, what they stood for, what they cared about, why they were here.  Because in the end, that is what we want to be able to say "I was here" and have it mean something to the people we love, the world, to our God.  We want to be able to leave this world healed.  Not physically healed.  But having spent a lifetime trying to understand that healing is about all facets of your life.  It is about striving for a completeness in all parts of your life.  A completeness with your family, your faith, your work, your body, your mind, your devotion. 

So, what can you put your "I was here" marker on?  Are you loving as much as you can?  Are you giving as much of yourself as God desires?  Are you listening?  Are you ready to show the world that "You were here".

Listen and be inspired!

Beyonce, "I was here"