Saturday, January 9, 2010

"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever." -Mohandas Gandhi

I got alarmingly sad news tonight. A young girl (aged 15) who I have been teaching ballet to for the past couple of months died. It seems that she had an aggressive cancer, but I don't know the details. It is a shock and it is a tragedy for her family and for those of us who knew her. She was a beautiful, bright, warm, charismatic girl who was a hard worker and a dedicated dancer. The quote by Mohandas Gandhi reminds me of her. I don't know when or how she found out about her condition, but even the last time I saw her she was working as hard as ever to improve and learn. It is a lesson in life for all of us. Since finding out about Peanut's diagnosis, I have been struck by the seeming randomness of so much. My spiritual beliefs go deeper than randomness though, so maybe "unpredictability" is a better word. I never in a million years would have thought that I would be giving birth to a baby with Down Syndrome. I never in a million years would would have thought that cancer would take the life of a young 15 year old girl who I teach ballet to every week. I never in a million years would have thought that one of my close friends would be battling stage 4 breast cancer. It's all unpredictable and we can make our Plans, but it is a reminder to do what we love, to love those around us and to cherish every minute as if it were the last.

It doesn't feel right to write about other things tonight. I think it'll be good to just remember to be grateful for what we have today, because tomorrow is not promised to us.

No comments: