It's true. You never know when (or where) life is going to hand you something that you'll take with you everywhere, forever.
A few days ago, I saw on my new friend, R's, wall "It's My Day!" I wondered why she had a whole day dedicated to her, and I knew it wasn't her birthday. She's a friend of the bride (who I spoke about in the last post,) so I knew I'd see her this last weekend and I could ask her about her day then.
As we're sipping Drag Queen-served mini Cosmopolitans, a friend next to me congratulates her for having passed another "R Day." I asked R, "why do you have a whole day dedicated in your honor?"
"I'm a leukemia survivor."I began to tear up, because before I even asked, I had a gut feeling that was the reason why she had a whole day for herself. She told me NOT to cry because she's been in remission and healthy for the approx 4 years.
After telling me the whole story: (mind you, there are drag queens taking our orders for dinner throughout all of this) she was diagnosed on her 21st birthday, spent that summer in the hospital going through chemo, the Mayor of her town dedicated an entire day in August to "R," went through a breakup with a boyfriend, lost her hair, and then...her brother's marrow was tested and had her exact bone marrow match. He's 5 years younger than her.
I started tearing up again. This time, because I told her that God put him, and his perfect bone marrow, in her family and life because God had that plan for her. R has been healthy ever since her little brother gave her a piece of him.
Now, to see this 25 year old girl dancing around with an X-rated straw (courtesy of the bridesmaids, naturally) in her mini Cosmo, and chatting it up with La-Diva the Spanish Drag Queen, you'd never think that she had gone through Hell and back.
She says that though she isn't one of those survivors who takes "every day by the balls" and lives up every single moment, she greatly appreciates her life and is very happy that she is where she is now. She says that if she has a lazy Sunday and wants to watch TV all day, she does it. If she wants to go out and have an all-night dance fest with her friends and come in at 4am, she does it. In other words... she's a regular, brilliant, beautiful, amazingly bold 25-year-old girl.
She truly is an absolute inspiration to me and every other girl at that table that night.
...Even the ones with manly parts.
xoxo
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