Pocketful of Purpose

The email began with, "I'm so sorry..."   The email arrived yesterday afternoon.  The email broke my heart.

Heaven gained another budding artist, while Earth lost incredible beauty.  

It happened 10 years ago.  It happened yesterday.  

Reitza Rosado Salgado, may you paint the heavens with love and happiness.  You were a fixture at the Ronald McDonald House; a hero to us all, and a warrior to your family.  We love and miss you.

Carrying my angels with me!  You will always be my heroes.

I didn't need another reason to run today's race.  As the ribbons display, I've gained enough this year.  Being a volunteer at the Ronald McDonald House is the greatest honor I have ever received.  I waited almost a year for a spot to open up on a weekly team, and when I was assigned to the Thursday night team, I was given a gift.  You see, volunteering at the Ronald McDonald House can be gut wrenching, heart breaking, and wonderful all at the same time.  There are periods of intense joy, as we watch families pack up their room and head home with a clean bill of health.  As you may have guessed, there are also periods of intense sadness, as we receive news of yet another child who has passed away from the beast that is cancer.  Without my Thursday night team, I would be lost.  Simply put, they are my family.

As I opened the email yesterday afternoon, I felt my heart break - a sinking feeling in my stomach combined with true soreness in my chest.  Reitza was a young woman who was truly an inspiration to all who knew her.  She was an incredible friend to the other kids at the House.  She was an amazingly talented artist; creating pieces of beauty though her world was full of pain.  She was her mother's warrior; her hope above all hopes.  She was a true fighter.  She is our angel, our hero.

I posted on Facebook, that when G-d takes away yet another budding artist, he robs the world of incredible beauty.  I asked Katie to take care of Reitza, and help her paint the heavens.  The two of them will create unparallelled beauty - a heaven that shines with hope and love.  A safe place for the angels already there, and those yet to come.

So why do I run?  I think you know why.

With LOVE, GRATITUDE, & HOPE,
Shelby