Tonight's picture was taken in May of 2006. Mattie was four years old and was in preschool. That day, the children were making gak. A kind of clay like substance, except it is green and more slimy. Mattie LOVED it! The person handing him the gak was Margaret. Margaret made Mattie's first year of preschool very memorable and as such, we became close friends. On the anniversary eve of her death (four years ago), I remember her and the wonderful teacher she was. She set a tone that carried over to how the parents of these children related to each other. In fact, many of the parents of the children you see in this photo are Mattie Miracle supporters.
Quote of the day: You don’t have to say everything to be a light. Sometimes a fire built on a hill will bring interested people to your campfire. ~ Shannon L. Alder
The reason why I am showing you this cutie, is because I wanted you to see our Walk t-shirt this year. It will help put my story that I am about to tell you into context.
This afternoon, I met up with a friend of mine at a local pastry shop in Alexandria, VA. While there, she handed me an exact Walk t-shirt that she was given. Apparently when I went to grab the shirt and fold it, the woman sitting behind us said loudly.... "nice shirt, can I see it." So I went over to her and her friend and explained the nature of the shirt and how it was used at our awareness walk.
It turns out that this woman was once a pediatric nurse and she recalled with me caring for a little boy, named Sylvester, who was dying from cancer. I thought it was fascinating that this death was years ago and yet the boy and his memory remained very fresh in her mind. Frankly this doesn't surprise me as nurses and their patients/families develop a close bond, as I see it with Mattie and many of his nurses. They are our memory keepers. But it was very meaningful to hear this woman's story, her experiences, and to hear her commentary about our shirt.
But our interaction did not end there. She immediately took out her check book and made a nice contribution to Mattie Miracle (do know that I never mentioned that I lost a child to cancer, I merely explained what the Foundation does). I was so touched by her kindness and generosity that I handed her the Walk t-shirt. A shirt that she plans on sending to her daughter in Culver City, CA. I also happened to learn that this woman is originally from Massachusetts. Why doesn't this surprise me? I find people in Massachusetts are actually very friendly and personable and it always amazes me how I can have more conversations with people in one day when visiting Boston, than I can have for an entire week in Washington, DC.
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