Friday, April 28, 2017

Friday, April 28, 2017

Tonight's picture was taken in May of 2009. Mattie was visited by his friend Abbie. Mattie and Abbie went to the same preschool and were in the same kindergarten class. That day they decided to take a big bin (used to catch vomit in all reality) and make a concoction  inside of it of legos, goldfish, water, and you name it. They had a great old time. Visiting Mattie in the hospital wasn't always easy. There were times he did not want to see his friends, hear noise, and with that would refuse people access to his room. As a friend visiting, one had to understand this and not take it personally. Some parents refused to allow their child to visit Mattie as he got sicker, but regardless of how Mattie was doing, Abbie came to visit and play. In fact, she treated Mattie always as a friend, not someone she was simply visiting because he had cancer. 


Quote of the day: I dreamt we walked together along the shore. We made satisfying small talk and laughed. This morning I found sand in my shoe and a seashell in my pocket. Was I only dreaming? ~  Maya Angelou

The little girl you saw in the photo above is now 15 years old. This is what Abbie looks like now. She is in 9th grade, where Mattie would be if alive. Abbie, with assistance from her mom, got to the donut store at 7am today, bought donuts and set up this sign-up table in the hallway of the high school. Abbie is trying to recruit students to join her Walk team, and believe it or not, donuts are a great incentive on a Friday morning. To make a long story short, Abbie recruited 10 other students so far, and collected over $100 in donations, in addition to registrations. 

A close up of the table! Duck Donuts just opened in Alexandria, VA, so it is the hottest donut right now, APPARENTLY! Abbie had flyers about the Foundation's Walk, registration forms, and in a matter of a short period of time, was very successful. There will be another donut incentive table next week at well at School. 

Tempting no? Apparently these boxes of donuts accomplished their goal today. Though Mattie missed 1st grade through 9th grade, it is wonderful to know that children still remember him. Of course, I do think that for these children who remember, they are nurtured and encouraged to do so by their parents. These parents aren't afraid to understand and reflect on the nature of such a significant loss. Accepting this loss and talking about it among teenagers isn't easy, which is why being given a safe platform to talk about this must happen at home. It isn't only a conversation that children should hear about from their school counselor. Mainly because this will be a VERY acute or non-existent conversation at some schools. Whereas processing and accepting loss takes a long time, and the only one going on this lifelong journey with a child is one's parents and family members.