Tomorrow is a very special day. Its NYCs Times Square Jumbo-tron BIG! Its a Pinky Promise Day. Its my day to spend with Jenas friends. If you dont know the story, heres are some excerpts from my book Beyond Breathing explaining it all. (Excerpt) “Margarete, I have a question to ask you …” my friend Kathy Mackey said, almost afraid of the question, because it was December 17, only a week after the funeral. “You can say ‘no.’ But I have to ask.” “What, Kath?” “The Milton girls want to take you out to lunch,” she blurted quickly. Kathy’s daughter, Sara, is one of The Milton Girls and The Milton Girls had known Jena since preschool. The Milton Girls are the girls who knew her secret purpose in life; the Milton girls made Jena laugh, and Mrs. Bliss would take The Milton Girls to see Jena every time she was in the hospital. Denise is our dear friend and Matt’s mom. Matt and Eric have been friends since the second grade and Jena—or Jena-bean, as Denise called her—was like the daughter Mrs. Bliss never had. The Milton Girls were in so much pain right now, and I was scared I couldn’t help them. Yet they wanted to have lunch with me. They were pretty incredible friends who were reaching out, and I was scared to death to see them. How could I possibly say ‘no’? I agreed to a lunch on December 28. There are eleven girls and one boy— Michael They are “The Milton Girls plus Mike.” I love them all. I decided I would make a gift bag for each of them. In each bag, I placed several small gifts with a brief explanation: Dear Milton Girls, Some of the most important lessons I learned in life were from Jena. I learned how important your time is and who you share that time with. Thank you for sharing your time with Jena. Here are a few things I’d like to give you: A Penny I included a poem about pennies from heaven that I found on the Internet. A Mirror So you can always be reminded that beauty comes from the inside out and that you are beautiful through and through, and remember to be true to that person staring back at you. A Journal So you can write your own story, knowing you are special because you are you. Your life is worth writing down so you can look back and remind yourself how wonderful you truly are. A Peppermint Patty So you can remember the story of Jena. The “good” stuff is the candy part. Jena loved Peppermint Patties. The “good” stuff is who you are on the inside. The “wrapper” just holds in all the good stuff. Sometimes wrappers get torn and ripped and just can’t hold the good stuff anymore. Jena’s wrapper was a beautiful thirteen-year-old girl, but her “good stuff” will always be with us. So remember that next time you eat a peppermint patty. Jena’s Picture So you always remember how you touched the life of my daughter, and for that I will be forever grateful. Thank you for being her friend and loving her for who she was because that is why she loved each one of you. You will forever be special in my heart. I would love it if you could let me know how things are going. Jena valued your friendship so very much, and it would be nice to stay in touch. -Margarete December 28 arrived and I was sick to my stomach. I didn’t know how this lunch would turn out, or even if it was such a good idea. How could I help them when I couldn’t even help myself? I have no intention of eating and wonder if I’d be a bad role model if I just ordered wine for lunch. I pulled myself together and took a deep breath. I grabbed the gift bags and had Marc drive me to the restaurant. The Milton Girls were all there with their moms by the time I arrived. They had tears in their eyes, too, as they jumped out of their chairs and hugged me tightly. Somehow we made it through lunch, and they opened their gift bags. They loved them. We all pinky promised to meet once a year for lunch, every December 28, so we can update each other on our lives. They are great girls from great families, and they will be fine. I know a pinky promise is better than any contract, and I know why these girls plus Mike were so special to Jena. (End of Excerpt) So tomorrow...its a Pinky Promise date with The Milton Girls plus Mike...at The Mill House Brewing Company and I cant wait! (Pictures are from one of annual lunches in NYC)...we even made it on NYCs Jumbo-tron. Yeah, were that BIG ;-)
Posted on: Sat, 27 Dec 2014 18:02:37 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015