Things That Just Suck

Sorry for the title, but often that is the reality when you lose a loved one.  We all feel it, but not all of us are brave enough to say it.  Tami wanted nothing more than to be the best mom to her kids.  She wanted to see the last one graduate, all of them get married, all of them have children...she dreamed of kissing her grandkids and spoiling them.  She wanted to watch them all be successful in their careers and get out on their own.  Since her passing, two of her sons found full-time employment and moved out on their own, or with friends; her youngest daughter graduated high school and turned 19; her oldest daughter got engaged, went wedding dress shopping and will be getting married in October.  As Tami's best friend, I know how much these things meant to her.  I also know how much each of the kids misses her when something happens they wish they could share with her.  It just sucks that she can't share in these moments in person as she had hoped and dreamed.

As a minister at heart, Tami wanted all to know the healing peace that only God can bring during a battle against cancer.  As an advocate, she wanted her peers and others to come who are battling colon cancer to take it seriously and catch it early, and to not be too busy with life to get a test done.  Since Tami's passing, her family and I have partnered with the Colon Cancer Coalition's Get Your Rear In Gear 5K Run/Walk to raise money for colon cancer awareness and screening.  The race will be Orange County's first and the 4th of its kind on the West Coast.  We are doing the race on the anniversary of her passing, November 19, 2011 in Irvine, CA.  More details to come.  Her family and I have also started to create a non-profit called TamiS Colon Cancer Foundation.  With this foundation, we will oversee the Get Your Rear In Gear fundraiser, continue her photography passion with TamiS Photography and offer the ministry piece to families "How Do You Pack For This Journey".  Our goal is to partner with families through terminal disease and help bring that peace Tami experienced as she went from being in this world, to being with her Lord and Savior.  Again, this just sucks.  She would have wanted to be a part of this, as this was her dream.

So, there you go, things that just suck!  Do you have a list of things that just suck?  It's ok to list them out.  It's ok to acknowledge they suck.  But, don't stay there...acknowledge the disappointment, the hurt, the sadness, the loss and then turn those feelings into something positive, productive, and life changing.  Tami's family and I are doing just that.