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Saying Goodbye

I know that I've commented before about how strange it was to hear that an old friend was getting married or having a friend on Facebook. Here's a new one for that list. This morning, I received a Facebook message to let me know that an old friend had passed away.

I met her at camp when I was 16 years old. She was a couple of years younger than me (my brother's age), but I liked her immediately. I felt like I'd known her forever - and I secretly thought that she was maybe a little bit like what I imagined my mom had been like when she was that age, both in looks and in personality. We kept in touch by email for years and years after that summer, and she always made me laugh. It's really only been in the last couple of years that we hadn't emailed as often anymore.

She was quirky and funny and definitely her own person, but in this kind of unassuming way that totally surprised (and delighted) me. I half-expected her to be this good quiet little church girl, and she was... But she also packed this wicked sense of humour and drama. I remember cheating at a camp game with her and hiding out of bounds from the campers in a campers-vs-staff game of hide and seek. We hid out in the trees with a couple of other girls and laughed until our stomachs hurt. I still have pictures of that adventure.

We found each other again on Facebook a few months ago. She'd been working in Vancouver, and I mentioned that I'd be there again in June - and I'd been looking forward to reconnecting with her then.

I got a message this morning that she died on Tuesday night. Cancer. She'd been in treatment in NYC for months. I understand why I didn't know, but I am so incredibly sad right now.

Please keep her family in your prayers. I can't imagine how much they're hurting with this incredible loss.

Labels: My Friends, My Life

posted by Lindsay @ 12:32 PM