Something that I have learned in the past few years is to never take life for granted and to enjoy the time that I have with the people around me because time really does fly by. With everything going on in the world in terms of the Coronavirus pandemic as well as numerous shootings and protests, the world was extremely difficult to cope with in 2020 and 2021. In my experience, my life was going downhill for more than just these reasons. I lost two of the most important women to me in a seven-month span. Only 231 days apart. Although this was the most difficult thing I’ve ever had to go through, and as much as I hate to say it, I feel that this whole experience helped me to really understand how short life can be.
In summer of 2020, my mommom on my dad’s side decided after many years that she did not want to continue her dialysis treatment and wanted to be put on hospice. All her family and closest friends came and gave her every bit of love that we could, trying not to show just how sad we were. After only a couple short days on hospice, my mommom passed away on July 7th, 2020. My beautiful ladybug. That Christmas, and every Christmas and holiday to come, never felt and never will feel the same. But that pain only got worse a few short months later.
Christmas 2020 came around and both sides of my family had caught Covid. Even though it was tough to get through for everyone, especially because it was before the vaccines were out, we all recovered, except for one important person. In early January, my mommom on my mom’s side went into the hospital because her symptoms from Covid became worse and worse. Then, On February 23rd, 2021, my mommom passed away. My beautiful butterfly. How could this have happened? How could I lose both of my mommoms, the glue to my family, the sunshine on my bad days, my biggest supporters, that fast?
The next couple months after that were the worst months of my life. My anxiety and depression had only worsened. The feeling of not being able to visit them or call them on the phone when something happened was unbearable and felt so unfair. But I knew that they wouldn’t want me to give up. I continued to do great in school and that led me to Jefferson, where I am majoring in pre-medical studies. I know that they would be so proud. Even though these two events were by far the worst things that have ever happened to me, I truly believe that they taught me to appreciate life more. I’ve learned to not let everything bother me, to call that friend I haven’t talked to in a while, to face my fears, to keep trying, and to appreciate the little things in life because you never know what can happen the next day. Time flies. But I know my ladybug and butterfly will be here fluttering around to keep me strong.