Remembering Becky

Lately, I’ve been thinking about my roommate Becky because of blogging about my college days. After graduation and her wedding, she and her husband moved to Independence, Missouri and soon after started a family. We stayed in touch, and we enjoyed sharing several similar experiences. Her first two boys were twins. And she had two more children, another boy and a girl. So besides both of us being moms of multiples, we both had three boys and a girl. Her family came once on vacation and visited us in Colorado and we got to meet her kids and they all got to meet my family.
 
Then Becky got breast cancer.

When she was thirty-five, she lost her battle against the disease and died. Before she passed away, she told me she was at peace, that her family was in a “good” place, and she was confident she would live on in heaven.
 
Soon after her death, I found a breast lump. It wasn’t my first. The year after Jason and I were married, I found a lump. With surgery, the cherry-sized mass was removed and tested negative for cancer. This new lump after Becky died was a little different and my doctor was pretty certain it was cancer. I went in for surgery and once again, it was benign. A huge relief that this time Becky and I didn’t have so much in common.
 
The next year I ran the Race for the Cure 5K at the Air Force Academy. The organization offered placards to honor people who had been touched by cancer. The pink ones that said “In Celebration of…” were for survivors. I wore a white placard that said, “In Memory of Becky.” I couldn’t help but cry when I pinned it on my T-shirt, which I still have because I just couldn’t get rid of it.
 
This morning as I planned out my blog post, I thought about Becky’s family some more. I wanted to know how they were, what has happened since then, and if they’re okay. So I went to the amazing resource for finding people, Facebook, and I started searching. It didn’t take long, and I found Becky’s husband. I sent a friend request and a note. And guess what? He’s already friended me and we’re in the middle of catching up! What an unexpected delight for an otherwise ordinary Saturday morning.