The kindness of others

I have been amazed at the outpouring of support and love from my friends and family. Even people that I don't even know have helped me in different ways. A couple of days after Bryan's death, I received an anonymous card with $500 cash inside. Last week, I received a check in the mail from a company called Phelps-Tointon. They said they were touched by the articles in the Greeley Tribune and just wanted to help my kids have a good Christmas this year. My doctor's office has "adopted" our family for Christmas this year and are getting gifts for the kids and me. Even the kids pediatrician has donated $75 to go into the memorial fund I have set up to save for their education.

Yesterday I got a card in the mail from a woman in Briggsdale, Colorado. She lost her husband in October in a car accident also. She has two little girls, 8 and 5. I have no idea who she is, but like so many others, she read the articles in the paper and wanted to reach out to me to let me know that I'm not alone. Like me, she was touched by the kindness of others and sent along a memorial too. She even sent a picture of her family and contact information. I will definitely get in touch with her. Maybe we can help each other out.

This Christmas will be very difficult. For the first time in my life, I am dreading waking up on Christmas morning. But I have been shown the true meaning of Christmas time and time again over the past few weeks. People, strangers even, are reaching out to give their love and that has strengthened me in ways I can't describe. I only hope that someday I can somehow repay the kindness that I have been shown. All I can do is pay it forward and pass it along.