My friend and co-worker, Patti has had great joy and great sadness in her life. Much of each within the last few years. Patti's children are now grown with children of their own, she was embarking on a new real estate career and received the devastating diagnosis of breast cancer. Without missing very many days of work in real estate or in her full time job as a hair stylist, Patti started chemotherapy.
We all watched Patti handle what life had given her with grace and dignity, even as she battled fatigue and the loss of her hair, she worked professionally with clients. Those of us at work marveled at her endurance. Then she received a phone call that changed her life forever.
Her four year old grandson, Joey was in the hospital after a fall at the babysitter's home. The prognosis was bleak and Joey died within a few days, but the tragedy did not stop there. After an emotional funeral, the police informed the family that they suspected abuse from Joey's daycare provider. Within weeks, the babysitter confessed to injuring Joey and causing his death.
When many women would have fallen apart, Patti continued to push ahead with her treatments and sought counseling to deal with her grief, all the while working. Now almost one year later, Patti has received a clean bill of health and is helping her son and his family settle into a new home and a life without Joey. Patti always has a smile for everyone at our office and offers encouragement to others when instead, we should be mindful of her suffering over the last two years. Her hair is back, she wears a lot of pink to honor those who still battle breast cancer, her real estate career is moving along and she carries the tattoo "Joey" on her wrist as a quiet reminder of the sweet boy lost from their family.
To see Patti now one does not know of her joys and sadness, but only of her great faith and love for those around her.
Indianola, Iowa
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