My Sister's Keeper

Sunday afternoon my sister, mom & I went to watch My Sister's Keeper. Before it even got through the first 5 minutes, I had a lump in my throat & tears in eyes. And did the whole time. Some movies just really hit home with some people. This was one of those for me.

My sister had Leukemia when she was two. I was six. Being so young, I don't remember a whole lot of what she went through. Also, my parents guarded me from most of it. But what I do remember was tough. Very tough. Before she was fully potty trained, Jamie had been through more than anyone ever should during their entire long life. My sister was a fighter. I only wish I could be 1/2 as strong as she was during this battle. I never once heard her complain. She just thought cancer was a normal part of life. Like everyone goes through it at some point. It still amazes me how even death never got this little girl down. Being at St. Jude throughout her preschool years & more, she made her first best friends at the hospital rather than school or daycare. One little girl I remember very well was "Tennessee". (I never knew if that was her real name or if it was a nickname she acquired along the way. My sister's nickname that some of the nurses gave her was "Wild Thing"! It fit her well! haha) Anyway, Jamie & Tennessee were inseparable. They were both very social little girls & everyone just adored them. They were partners in crime. That is, until Tennessee lost her battle with cancer. I will never forget Jamie asking my mom & dad when she will go to heaven with Tennessee. She wasn't afraid & even at 2, she knew there is something so much better than this life on earth for believers.

I also will never forget her walking around the house with a Ziploc bag picking up her strands of hair as it fell to the floor. It breaks my heart to think about it now. Since I was so young, I understood that my sister was sick, but not to its full extent. Having a child of my own now, I don't see how my parents (or any parents of a terminally ill child) did it. Mom always says that it was only by the grace of God & His hand guiding them through the whole thing that they were able to make it. My parents have a framed quote that I love and read everyday because it hung in the hallway outside my bedroom when I was young. It says "Ain't nothing going to come up today that me & the Lord can't handle." It was just a great reminder that God is in control. "What is impossible with men is possible with God." Luke 18:27

For 2 long years of her life, St. Jude was more like home for my sister than our actual home since she spent the majority of her time there. One, if not both of my parents were always there with her. I wanted to be with her all of the time & was whenever possible. I remember sitting in a tiny room with her literally all day long while she got her Chemo treatment through her "line"-the catheter-like tubing that went into her chest. We would sit & watch Disney movies the whole day. I think we literally owned every Disney movie ever made!

Since she was couped up in the hospital so much, she never really got to experience normal everyday things that we all take for granted. The Dream Factory (any organization very similar to Make-A-Wish) chose to grant Jamie a wish. When they asked her what was 1 thing she has always wanted to do, or where she has always wanted to go, etc., her answer was "I want to go to Kroger!" Bless her little heart! She just wanted to go to the grocery store! Needless to say, we talked her into Disney World! ;0)

We are so blessed & so thankful that Jamie was able to pull through & go into remission to stay. She just went for her last annual check-up this spring! Seeing my baby sister go through her fight with cancer has made me appreciate the small things in life so much more & everyday that I get to spend with my family is the best day ever. I am so blessed! I love you sissy!