Dragonflies, Butterflies & Lady Bugs

More Thanks

I was going to simply edit this into my last entry, but then I realized I wanted it to stand separate because I am so touched by this that it deserves its own entry.

The other thing that is happening this weekend is that Jeff is attending a ceremony at Jasmine and Gab's old school that will, in part, honor Jasmine. Her class had some funds left over at the end of last year, and they decided they wanted to do something in remembrance of Jasmine. Work was being done in the butterfly garden, including some renovation on benches, and they decided to put a plaque up in her honor.

I so wanted to be there for this, to have an opportunity to thank the kids and Jasmine's teacher for being so supportive through the year. When Jasmine first started school, I worried that kids would make fun of her because of her difficulties breathing. I remembered kids as being cruel to those who are different. I was always pleasantly surprised by how supportive the kids were, how much they loved her and how much they wanted to learn about what made her cough.

When she was in third grade, her teacher had a "student of the month" designation, and as part of the honor, the student's parents would come in and give a little presentation about the student. When Jasmine was student of the month, Jeff and I went in to talk about her. Naturally CF came up. I was amazed by how much the children noticed and by the questions they asked. They were good questions. They were questions that showed they cared. Any sliver left over from my worries about kids making fun of her slipped away.

One of the things I've wondered and maybe even worried about, a little, is how Jasmine's death affected her friends and her acquaintances. Death is such a stranger to most kids that age, at least in their peers. I wish I had handled it differently. I wish I had been able to reach out more, to the kids and also to their parents who sent us cards. I just couldn't do it. It wasn't a bitter "your-kid-is-alive-and-mine-isn't" kind of thing. It was a "I-don't-know-how-to-respond" kind of thing. I hope Jeff does a good job of taking any opportunity he has to let them know that.

I would especially like to thank Jasmine's teacher, Mr. Storrs, for being so wonderfully understanding as the year went on and for keeping priorities straight (I believe he told Jasmine that some things are more important than homework -- yay for that!), Gab's teacher, Mrs. Brucker for staying focused on Gab when everyone else was thinking about Jasmine and for not letting her do anything less than the best she could under the circumstances, the entire office staff, including the nurse, for taking good care of Jasmine and for putting such a wonderful tribute to her in the yearbook, and to all the other teachers and staff members who were touched by Jasmine and who let us know about it. Your memories have become our memories, and that is a greater gift than you can imagine.

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