Children Should Be Untouchable...

"How lucky are we to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard." 

~ Winnie The Pooh

Cancer sucks and children should be off limits. No one should suffer through this horrible disease but especially a child. Life is unfair. Life is precious. Life truly is a gift and I can tell you that Shelbie Murphy would want you to live yours to the absolute fullest and to be so very thankful for everything you have. She would tell you to be thankful for your loved ones that surround you, for your blessings right in front of you and for life's one precious gift. That's what she would want. She would want that because she was THAT kid.

I met Shelbie when she was just 9 years old and it was the summer before 4th grade. I was teaching right across the street from her house and she was this beautiful little girl inside and out. I remember meeting Jackie for the first time. Just as beautiful as Shel and so, so invested in her child and wanting her to succeed in 4th grade and I just loved the love and respect they had for one another. The bond between the two of them was so visible.
Shel had an amazing year that year and Jackie was able to see her grow into a beautiful young lady entering middle school. And I absolutely loved having Shelbie. She was one of my favorites. Always. And I know you're not supposed to have favorites but we do. And that relationship has lasted since 2007. 

I will miss you too love, but I know you'll be watching over us all.

Shel fought a long, hard battle for four years. She was truly the toughest girl I knew and she got that from the toughest woman I know. Beautiful, strong, positive, fighters in the truest sense of the word. She never lost her smile. She never lost her sparkle. She never lost her sense of humor, her laughter or her love of life.
Cancer robs us of many things, I know this firsthand with my own family. This is why I am doing what I am doing. This is why I am running to kick cancer's ass. And I am devastated that I will have another beautiful person to run in honor of. Shelbie, I will wear your name proudly.

But what cancer cannot do is, it cannot rob us of our love for one another. It cannot steal our memories. It makes us weak, but it also makes us so very strong. It makes us fighters. It makes us aware of every waking moment. Shelbie, in her short life, lived more and loved more and touched more lives than many people that are here for a lifetime. And that's an incredible legacy to leave behind.

I'm so proud to have been a part of Shelbie's life, of Jackie's life and to have taught her for her 4th grade year. I will forever remember this smile. 

         Shel, I'll be logging many miles in your honor beautiful girl. Watch over your Mum, she'll need your strength surrounding her now more than ever. You're her guardian angel for sure. 

We will all be by her side.

There goes a fighter.

That she was.

Shelbie had a slogan which was perfect for her because the one thing she never did was quit. So next time you are faced with a trying time, remember it is no time to quit trying.

Always.