Maddie

So, that last post was not an April Fool's joke. I really did intend to come back and write some Deep Stuff about what girls are looking for in a story, but by the time I was ready to work on it, I got the news about Maddie. And then I just couldn't think about anything else.

The following pictures are supposed to be posted later, to sync with Maddie's funeral this afternoon, but I'm not sure if I'll have internet access. I also feel like there's nothing I can add that hasn't already been said, and generally said in such ways that I could never hope to improve upon them. I'm not sure I even have anything of value to add.

The only thing I have to add is the ache in my heart. Being still unemployed (and having unexpected car expenses twice in a week), we don't have two pennies to donate towards the marchers. We signed up for the March of Dimes walk in Dallas, but haven't been able to find a single sponsor, and the march is THIS SATURDAY. I don't know if they'll even let us walk. I guess if it comes down to it, we'll walk around our neighborhood.
I'm really feeling a bit too useless to even continue this post, but I just had to post SOMETHING, even if it was just this depressing, non-inspirational drivel in purple font.
Ultimately:
Heather, and by extension, Mike, I consider you my friend(s). My heart wrenches whenever I am reminded of Maddie or of your adventures with her and whenever I try to consider what kind of gut-twisting horror you're living with. I have, more than once, pondered it to the point of literally, physically gagging. She has been living here, in us, as well as in you, since you began sharing her with us through your posts. Here she remains.