An Angel Got Her Wings Today

My Mom has such an open and giving heart, and always cares so much for other people. Somehow - I'm not sure how exactly - she befriended a young military family; probably in the course of her work, but I'm not sure. This young family had a little girl who was very sick. Little Reagan just turned 3 about a month ago and is just about a month younger than my own son. My mom and step-dad visited Reagan at St.Jude's Hospital in Memphis right after Thanksgiving and gave her a Rock N Roll Elmo. Reagan loved Elmo and smiled so big when she received her gift. My Mom said she drug the bag with Elmo in it all over the hospital with a huge smile on her face. My Mom would always tell me stories about how she was doing and how her treatments were going. Although Reagan seemed happy, she had a lot on her plate for a 3 year old: she had cancer.

Last week Reagan's parents received the news that no parents want to hear: Reagan's cancer had grown despite several rounds of chemo and weeks of intense radiation. They were told that there was no further curative treatments for their daughter, and were told to go home and make their little girl comfortable. Reagan was given 2 weeks to a couple of months to live.

I had meant to write a post on here to remind people to pray for her; praying for her pain to be tolerable and for her days to be happy. I envisioned her family taking her to Disney, playing on the beach, saying goodbye to each other and filling their days with happy memories before little Reagan grew weak and unresponsive. That's what I would want for my own children: happy days until the end. But Reagan doesn't need our prayers anymore, and my vision of what Reagan's final days should have been like never came to be. Reagan died this afternoon in her Mommy's arms with her Daddy nearby.

So now, I ask that you hold your babies close. Kiss them. Even when they are driving you crazy or insane and you just want a moment alone. Be glad that they are here and healthy and able to drive you crazy. And pray. Pray for Reagan's parents. From what my mom tells me, they are young and going through a terrible tragedy. Pray that they can go through this together, and make their pain tolerable. Make it so that they can find comfort in one another and love each other and love God.

I never met Reagan. But I see her face in my own children. I watch D and P playing and just think about how much I never want them to hurt, and how much pain Reagan must have been in, and how enraging it must be as a parent to see your child hurting and not be able to stop it. My heart grieves for Reagan's parents, but as Reagan's mother put it - Reagan is no longer in pain, and that is something to be thankful for.

To read Reagan's story, you go here.