This morning was the funeral of our neighbor's beautiful daughter Brynn. We arrived early to the viewing and spoke to her siblings and then to her parents. Her beautiful mother hugged me and expressed heartfelt words of what she was feeling. Then she said, "Teresa, hold your children close, hug them every day, enjoy every moment, and don't take one day for granted. " I cried and felt her pain. I connected to her as a mother and a parent. I have been feeling so many emotions the past few days. I know that death is not the end. I know Brynn is with God. I was worried about those that she left behind. Her little sister told me that "she felt like she was in a dream and just wanted to wake up and it not be real." Brynn was in our oldest son's carpool in Jr High School. She was a "light"...always fun, happy and kind. She loved Karaoke and celebrated "birthday's for a week" instead of just one day. She LIVED life with passion and went for her dreams. At work, she stayed out of gossip and everyone loved her. She made everyone feel like SHE was their best friend. Each of her four sibling felt this and shared many special moments of her.
She died at 24 years old. She was living a happy life that she loved- she skydived, traveled and served others. She did things that I have only dreamed of. She went on several humanitarian missions. She followed her dreams and was a nurse in the maternity ward. She loved life and was always making herself and other's laugh. I love that she kept of journal.
Today at her funeral, I felt like I was INSPIRED deep in my soul. They had bracelets that said "LIVE TO INSPIRE" which Brynn did. It simply was how this sweet girl lived. She faced life with determination and lived a life of helping others. The entire church building was full. A young man, sang the Green Day song that she loved. TIME OF YOUR LIFE. This song was how she lived. In the short time she was here, she did have the TIME of her LIFE. I am wearing my bracelet. It means so much to me. It will be reminder to me to do as SHE did.
I thought about this all day. I knew that I wanted to be more like her. I want to share what it meant to me personally. Can I be a kinder person? Can I be a better mother? Can I serve others more? Can I use my time and talents to help others? In return, maybe someone will notice and it will INSPIRE them in their own life. I think it's a cycle. I know I am constantly INSPIRED by so many wonderful people in my life. I know it is a goal for me to live in such a way that will (and I say this with humbleness in my heart) be an example and inspire the next person.
After the funeral, I went straight to Zach's baseball game. I was full of emotion. The game went well and they won the game. There was a two hour break until the next game. I went to a craft store down the street, Robert's Crafts. I KNEW in my heart that I needed to do something for Brynn's family. I walked in and felt that I needed to give the family a 12x12 album to document Brynn's life similar to what I first did when my mother passed away unexpectantly. A book A-Z that reflected WHO she was. I knew Brynn loved color and I wanted this book to represent her personality. I saw a display of SO SOPHIE by My Mind's Eye. It felt instantly a warm feeling throughout my body. I KNEW this was the line that I had to buy. I was grabbing lots of paper and wanted to cry with joy inside my heart. I felt such a peace in what I was doing. I know that God works through US to help others.
I saw a girl who worked at the store, and she said hello to me a couple of times. She approached me. She said she knew I was "Teresa Collin's" the scrapbooker/designer. She was so cute and asked me what I was doing. I literally got choked up and started to cry. I told her that I felt that I needed to share "what I do" with this family and help them create a album for Brynn. Then another girl who worked at the store came over to talk to me. We chatted and I felt a POWERFUL sweet feeling that God was guiding me to do this album.
I choose beautiful colorful papers that I knew would be something that she would have loved. I know that some people may not understand what scrapbooking or crafting is all about. However, if you do it...you know. It's a way to preserve and celebrate life's moments and memories. I am so thankful to be able to do this. The family has NO IDEA that I am going to take them this album. I pray that it will in some small way help them.
This really touched my heart-
On the back of the program was the following quote:
"I THOUGHT OF ABOUT YOU TODAY, BUT THAT IS NOTHING NEW. I THOUGHT ABOUT YOU YESTERDAY AND THE DAY BEFORE THAT TOO. I THINK OF YOU IN SILENCE, I OFTEN SPEAK YOUR NAME. ALL I HAVE ARE MEMORIES, AND A PICTURE IN A FRAME. YOUR MEMORY IS A KEEPSAKE WITH WHICH I'LL NEVER PART. GOD HAS YOU IN HIS KEEPING, AND I HAVE YOU IN MY HEART.
I know this post was VERY long. I hope my words articulated what is inside my heart. Today I was INSPIRED to be so much MORE... thank you Brynn. Rest in peace and know that you will never be forgotten.
