I can go back to the day that I met you. Although, I met
your belongings before I came to meet you. You and your team moved to 5
East…and I was by my lonesome at first, but then I started seeing boxes. I was
thinking…who is this lady that has just as many shoe boxes as I do…ha! I asked
one of your colleagues, “who is the person that is sitting here?” …and they replied…oh
that’s AW! It was weeks before I actually had the opportunity to meet you, but
when I did, I had a feeling we would get along. We made an introduction and you
said… “we should do lunch, I wanted to learn more about you”…my first thoughts
were…why in the world does this lady want to know about me…it threw me off
guard, but we scheduled the lunch.
We walked over to Starbucks and sat outside because it was
such a nice day out and we talked about everything under the sun. From how we
feel about work, to my crazy family, to your crazy family…no wonder it was so
easy for me to point out who was who in your family the first time I met them.
I remember telling you about the tumor that I had in my
breast and the stresses that came from it, but even then…I didn’t pick up that
you were experiencing that very situation.
You told me yesterday that you wanted to tell me, but never
found the right time to do it. And honestly, on Wednesday when I was driving to
the hospital to see you, thoughts were just going through my mind…wondering…and
thinking…was there ever a time where you tried to tell me…but I was too busy
running my mouth that I didn’t pick up on the signs. Still driving to the
hospital, had to pull over a few times to prevent an accident due to all the
tears that kept rolling down my face, just thinking about if you ever tried to
tell me and I wasn’t there for you…if I wasn’t there to listen.
I remember the day you took me around Oak Park to show me
around, searching for a new place of residence in that area. Although realizing
that Oak Park was waaaay too pricey for my budget, I still wanted to see what
it had to offer. We went from each corner of the city, from eating ice cream,
to getting cigar boxes, to stopping off at JJs or Sharks to fill my always
hungry stomach. I was really happy that you had me stay over with you, because
for some reason, on that day, I really felt like you needed me there. Yet, that
evening, when I saw that your hair was gone, I wanted so much to ask you if
something was wrong, but I didn’t want you to feel like you were obligated or I
didn’t want you to feel awkward telling me. So I chose not to ask.
That didn’t change how I felt about you, the friend that I
found in you or the worry that I also had for you. I knew something may have
been wrong, but never did I think it was breast cancer.
I want you to know…that within these few years of
knowing you…I truly see you as a very dear and close friend of mine. Not just
someone I work with or someone I occasionally think about, I value our
friendship.
I don’t know how many times you’ve told me to be nice to
these guys, stop giving them such a hard time, stop eating that greasy food,
come volunteer with me, when are you moving, stay focused, be careful with
these guys and stop giving away your cookies, lets go look for apartments…and
you never backed down on doing something fun! You were always full of life and
energy…and if your health does not take a turn for the better, I am really
going to miss that. When I say that you are like a big sister to me…you really
are…and as of yet, I haven’t found such a diva, classy, sassy, mature, private,
beautiful, wise, appreciative, smart, intelligent, professional, real, down to
earth, open minded and heart of gold like you.
I just wanted to let you know these things because on
Wednesday, I thought that I wouldn’t ever be able to say these things to you
and for you to hear them. There is so many things that I want to say, but for
now, I’ll keep it to the point. I love you sis and I always will.
