All our stars are silent...

On Thursday, May 1, I lost a very dear friend. Her name was Lisa. She contracted a heart virus at a young age, ending her career as a nurse, and starting a career nursing a bad heart. The bitter irony is that Lisa had one of the best hearts I've ever known.

We met at the baseball park‎, her husband coached my son. Over the years, our kids played ball together, or her husband coached, either way, we were always happy to be on the same team. Cheering on each others children, sharing our lives while spending our lives at the ballpark, was always a pleasure and a boatload of laughs when I was with Lisa.

As our kids grew out of little league, and onto other parks, schools and friends, we didn't see each other as often.  When we did see each other, it was as if time hadn't slipped away at all, Lisa always had the same greeting for me "how are you, how are your beautiful children?", along with a warm hug.

Lisa was a source of strength for many, obviously including myself. When I lost my father to cancer, she was supportive, even when I tried to shut the door on everything and everyone, Lisa found a way in. She wanted to make sure I knew, I was loved, I was cared for, and when the hell were we going to go out for a Gingerbread Latte?

‎A few years ago, when my marriage broke down, and I was also sick with RA. Lisa sent me an email with topless, oiled up firefighters that had some cheesy saying on it. It was laugh out loud funny because it was just so Lisa. When I got diagnosed with cancer, Lisa started sending me funny quotes, inspirational quotes, more firemen and pretty much anything you can think of, daily. She wanted me to keep my head in the game, and not give up.   She encouraged me to keep writing in my blog, and she would always find a catchphrase that she liked and use it when she wrote to me.

 Always a fashion "do" and never a "dont" was Lisa. When I shared with everyone that my cancer team was "going for the gold"...she shows up at my house with a gold handbag, and wallet...because yes, we are going for the gold and we were going to proudly show it, with fashion, of course.

With Lisa, you always knew her family came first. She was involved in all of her three children's sports, their schooling and whatever their interests you could tell Lisa supported them 100%. She's passed along her kindhearted ways to all three, and that's always been clear, from young ones to now, her children, are a true reflection of her, kind, intelligent, respectful, all with big hearts.

Never was that more clear to me, than when I had that painful conversation with her oldest daughter just a few days ago. Kristina called to tell me the awful news, she bravely told me what happened, while we both cried. Towards the end of the conversation, when I asked if there was anything I could do, ever her Mother, Kristina did not think of herself, she thought of me. She told me how much her mom loved me and cared for me, and the thing that I should do is to beat this cancer, that's what Lisa would want me to do.

I will miss Lisa dearly, memories of the ballpark, her laugh and her wonderful friendship will always have a place in my heart.