Devon

PASADENA, CALIFORNIA - I’m sorry, my wonderful Devon. Sorry that you and your sweet family are on this journey. You have creative vision, a tender heart and an unquenchable spirit of generosity; in short, you are the most rare of gems. Every word you say, that you write, that you express; they are all words with more meaning and thought behind them than anyone else I’ve ever met.

When we met, we were preparing to ride on a float for a parade. Two strangers - connected by social media, breast cancer and a superfantastic handbag company. When I left Pasadena, I knew that you and your family would always be a part of my heart. You convinced me that surgical scars are not who we are, but just a small part of what we have done. In your mind, scars are beauty marks that indicate life, survival, power through grace. 

You, dear Devon, are the embodiment of power through grace. Those tumors are just another blip you will chalk up to survival, my friend. I hate cancer. I hate that you have this happening right now. But I love you, and your whole family. Happy birthday, my Devon. My prayer is that I get to say happy birthday to you about 40 or 50 more times. xoxo

Photo credit: Catherine Money