Maddie
I didn’t know about Maddie or her parents before today. I happened upon a link (via someone I follow on Twitter) while nursing my own little one. And even though I didn’t know her, I can say that I did feel the loss of her.
When a family loses a child, it’s as if the entire world shudders, crumbles a bit. And you look at your own and can’t help to think “What if…” And you gasp for breath a little, clutching him tighter, turning his face up to you, touching his cheek to yours, taking in all of him.
It’s not as if the feeling is “Oh thank God it wasn’t us.” It’s more, “If it could be them, why *couldn’t* it be us?” Your heart stops for a minute. And when it starts beating again, the adrenaline of gratitude is mixed with just so much sadness.
(Go here to see Maddie’s online memorial. Donations can be made to the March of Dimes in her name by going here.)
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Hi Val, I read your blog all the time, and JR is just too adorable. I just lost my mom last Monday, but it is all OK, it is the “natural” order of things, she was 80 years old, and lived a full and happy life, she did not suffer, and we all celebrated her life as she would have wanted (and expected!). I cannot imagine losing a child, and I can only send my prayers to this family and hope that they can make some sense of what has happened, because everything happens for a reason, whether we can figure it out at the time or not, but eventually you do. Keep on posting, Reams love it!