Epic Thanks Tampa Bay 2010 : a Song for Our Changemaker

Changing A Life

*edited*

I got a text message from my wonderful nephew, Hunter, today. It read: "I have a poem I wrote about Dee...if you think it's good, could you post it on your website?"  The heart of a 14-year old boy is sometimes hard to tap into but this clearly shows he has a big ol' heart of gold that's filled with love and empty with longing for someone who was once a very important part of his life.

Hunter, I do indeed think it's good so I'm sharing it with my friends. I think you may be onto something here and I think it is the beginning of a beautiful ballad. Who knows, maybe we could get someone to put it to music for you.

Changing A Life
by Hunter Love
On that scary October night
She didn't have a clue
Oh how I wish I'd seen
Her one last time before she flew.

I never got to see her much
Because she found new friends
All of our lives changed
For my love for her never ends.

When she left that dreadful night
I woke up to a painful day
Knowing I would never see her again
I begged her and begged her to stay

On a sunny day
Grace filled the funeral home
When we said our goodbyes
All her friends were left alone.

Team Ra-Ras Kicks Breast Cancer - Susan G. Komen for the Cure Philadelph...

The Philadelphia Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, teaming up with over 130 NFL Alumni Philadelphia Chapter Cheerleaders and UnitedHealthcare of Pennsylvania, invite the world to help "Team Ra-Ras Kick Breast Cancer." To encourage viewers to share the video with others and increase breast cancer awareness, UnitedHealthcare will donate ten cents ($.10) per view to The Philadelphia Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure up to a maximum donation of $100,000.

In Your Face

I was playing around with some macro settings on my Canon SX200 point and shoot camera today when Peppy decided he needed to check out what I was doing.

Cat Nap

Support the fight against breast cancer simply by taking a Cat Nap.

No Finer Heart

Customize your own free digital scrapbook

 On the anniversary of one of our family's greatest losses, I wanted to continue to share my original blog post from 2007. However, I wanted people to see and hear why this was so important to me. I made reference to the Sister Hazel song Firefly but I believe that until you actually hear this beautiful song, while looking at the faces of these two amazing women, you cannot fully appreciate the emotion it evokes.


I've found myself on multiple occassions recently having conversations with my grandmother. I don't know why now, after all these years but I've felt her presence with me more lately. I know she's watching out for me as much now as the day I was born. My grandmother's mind was taken from us well before her physical body left us and that was very hard for me. I did not go to visit her during her final years because I had this one perfect memory with her that I didn't want to be replaced by the shell what became my grandmother. I regret not being with her and telling her goodbye during her final hours but for me personally, it was the right decision. When I think of her now and have those long conversions with her spirit, I can only see the smile and ever present twinkle in her eye. That is my perfect memory.

Today, four years ago, our Dee was suddenly and tragically taken from us. Our family has never fully recovered from that and we continue to struggle with the loss of her smile and complete silliness. It has been four long years of wondering what happened on that dark, lonely stretch of country road, what exactly transpired to put her in the path of that oncoming car. We may never know but we won't give up the fight. We've dealt with no arrests, then finally an arrest  but that has been wrought with unending frustrations of delayed hearings and trial dates. My family, Dee's mother, brother, grandparents, cousins, all of us, we need closure. Please pray that we get that soon so that our healing can truly begin. My heart aches so much for my family as they try and cope with missing Dee so much.

Here is the original post from August, 2007 that came from my heart as I dealt with the  recent loss of Dee and then my grandmother.

Last October, just days before the L4L event in Clearwater, my 20 year old cousin, Dee, was killed in a terrible accident. She was struck by a car on a desolate country road in the middle of the night. My family is still reeling from this tragedy, not only for the loss we endured but also because we don’t yet know what truly happened. It is being investigated as a potential homicide. We are not allowed to know the details of the investigation due to the fact that the police are still awaiting the autopsy results. (YES…since October of last year…still waiting!) I’m from a small, very close-knit family and this loss has devastated us in many ways. I truly have no idea how her mom and brother go on each day without her. She was a beautiful girl who loved her family and loved life like you can’t imagine. Because of someone else’s actions, she never got a chance to experience all the wonders this world has to offer.

Now, fast forward 10 months. Days before leaving Tampa for Boston to attend OSD and the L4L Gala, I get another one of those dreaded calls from home. This time, it’s about my grandmother. She has been in a nursing home for years with Alzheimer’s but physically, still very healthy. She became very ill last week and had to be sent to the hospital where they determined that she had a blockage in her intestines, most likely caused by a tumor. Colon cancer was the probable diagnosis. The prognosis was bad. She was sent back to the nursing home to spend her last days. She gave up the fight this past Saturday afternoon, surrounded by her children and their children and their children. I, however, was unable to make the trip back to Alabama to be with her before she passed away.

I can’t help but think of the song Firefly. I’m hoping to hear the song this Sunday night in Boston at the Gala and I’ve made that special request. I want to honor the memory of two amazing women. One (in true Sylvia fashion) graced this earth for 31,031 days and probably touched as many hearts along the way. The other was cut short after only a quarter of that time, 7,605 days, but she had the potential to amaze people with her unique spirit. A family friend described my grandmother by saying “I will always remember her as a beautiful woman with a genuine smile that started in her heart and showed in the sparkles in her eyes.” That is a truly accurate description of both of these women. I know one thing for sure…”No finer heart could ever beat for you”.

My small family lost it’s matriarch and it’s baby girl in less than a year’s time. Please take a few minutes to hug your granny or your mom or your cousin today. Stop and count your blessings and be thankful for each minute of each day that you have those special people in your life. I would love just one more day with my Granny and I can only imagine how much Dee’s mom and brother wish for the same with her.

A Day at the Gardens

Mother and I made what will be a semi-annual trek to the USF Botanical Gardens Fall Flower Show yesterday for their Fall Plant Festival. Here's what we found.

Bat Faced Cuphea

I wanted to fill our entire front flower bed with these. They were completely adorable. But, what you can't tell from this zoomed in picture is that this little blossom was only about 1/2 in in size. Needless to say, I can't afford to fill my front bed with them. But, next fall, I'll be prepared.

Here are a couple of other beauties I found. I have a weakness for Orchids but they are so expensive to buy and maintain.

Fragrant Phalaenopsis bellina Species Orchid

This little fella (about 6-7 in" plant) was $35. It was beautiful but I'm just not ready to invest that much in something that I know I'm incapable of keeping alive.

There were also some vendors who were in the Fall/Halloween spirit with their decorations.

Kitty Scarecrow by Lutz Nutz

And the BEST one was Tutti-Fruiti Carmen. I think Carmen was with the Rare Fruit Council.

So, What did we buy you ask? :) I found the purrfect plants for our front entry.

Cat's Whiskers
(of course, did you expect any less from ME?)

And here's Mom, the one who does all the hard work, preparing the roots for planting.

Another find was the Brazilian Red Cloak. The pictures don't do this thing justice but I can assure it, it is a stunning flower and plant.

Awaiting it's new home.

Bonus: the guy pointed out that for the low low price of $20 per plant, Mom was getting quite the bargain. See all the little babies. WHAT?!?

Anyone that knows me knows how I never got the green-thumb gene from my mom. I'm trying to change that but there's a bamboo plant at my office that would beg to differ. :) So anyway, I picked up a couple of plants to join Mr. Bamboo, the Neanthebela Palm and the Pony Tail Palm. Now I just have to get mom to help me plant them.




Wish me luck! Or better yet, wish these little guys luck.

Peppy's New Bed

Peppy enjoying the new bed Grandma made for him.