A hero is defined as: any person especially a man admired for courage, nobility etc. (so I guess in my title I should have put heroine. but that definition is only a female hero lol...so I'm sticking with hero!)
A friend is defined as: a person whom one knows well or is fond of
and A sister is defined as: a girl or woman as she is related to the other children of her parents.. (I found that a quite amusing definition lol.. its a modern dictionary, I don't have my original good one yet!)
My sister Teresa was/is all of that and more to me!
Teresa was first my sister. she was 13 (or 14) when I was born. and as the definition above states: a female that I share parents with (lol!) When I was younger that's what we had..a sister relationship, I would watch her kids, we worked together with my dad, we'd yell at each other, she was older, she'd boss me around in her big sister voice, and I was the youngest....I'd do it.
Then she became my friend. As I got older, we would talk all the time, I'd tell her about boys, and the drama of my other friends. we'd talk about likes, dislikes, etc etc
she was so supportive of me, she was at all of my "stuff" choir performances, plays, etc. my friend and I made a bucket list and I was telling Teresa about it one time, then later I was at her house, and she was in the bathroom...(potty party) and she was telling me about a story she read about a boy who made a bucket list and he had BIG things on it! and he accomplished them all! and she told me that I shouldn't hold back on what I wanted to do and what I wanted to put in my list! if I believed it, I could do it!
Teresa was the type of woman to do ANYTHING for ANYONE!! she loved people who hated her, and when they showed it, she showed her love even more!, she would keep "things" in her car for girls at work who would have surprise visitors and nothing on hand, she would call my brother (in the air force) and tell him she was thinking of him and his men. there is no reason to go on with this list.. if you can think of any good deed, she's done it. for my whole life, I was always seeing her show love, be of service, have integrity and be loyal.
Teresa was diagnosed with colon cancer in march of 2005...I didn't know about it for a while.. I knew she had a tumor, she went and had surgery and got it removed...and it was still a while before I really knew what was going on. I kind of wish I would have known, but looking back maybe it was what I needed at the time.
Here is the story of how she became my hero: Toward the end of her life, I was visiting her in her bedroom and I was telling her that I had decided that i wanted to do dental hygiene and it was going to be a lot of math and I was kind of scared. and she told me that it would be worth it. I don't remember what else we talked about that day...I just remember that about school. she didn't talk much...just sort of mumbled (and picked her nose! :) ) I remember trying to hold back tears...reality was setting in that i wouldn't have her much longer. I walking out her bedroom door and she said bye and I had started crying by then...and I said bye. (she noticed the crying)...and her big sister tone...she said "hey! come here!" I minded...
water works let loose.... i hugged her and with no mumbling, and no cancer behind her words...she repeated to me: It'll be ok, it'll be ok, it'll be ok....
in the warmth of her hug and her fuzzy blue polka dotted pj's... she became my hero...
Why? because of what she left me... she left a legacy of doing what's right, no matter the outcome. she left the motivation to stick to something when you start it. she left me the knowledge of how we'll be blessed when we serve. she left me the example of loving our enemy. she left me a relationship with my other sisters that I wont ever take for granted. she left me the strength to over come even the largest obstacles. she left me the bravery to face my fears. she left me words I repeat to myself when I am going through something and I need to hear....it'll be ok!
one year for my birthday she gave me a paper that has some stars on it and it says "sisters are like stars, you cant always see them but you know they are there". I had that hanging in my room forever. I plan on hanging it here in my house sometime soon. between the 5 of us sisters, we have lived near and far. one or more of us always seems to be far... but in our hearts we wont ever be separate! Teresa isn't gone from our hearts or gone from our lives. she never will be. we have moved on from her death, and in a way we never will "get over it" we will always miss her presence. but we will also remember that she isn't really gone!
Teresa loved mickey so I just had to add this
short clip of mickey !
Isn't she pretty :)
I love you Teresa! and I miss you like crazy!!
