Saying Goodbye

I first met Sterling at the Starbucks in Target. She was the very last person to sign up for a group trip to Italy my sister and I had organized, and we met so I could give her the itinerary, collect her deposit, and answer any questions she might have. I liked her right away. She told me about her family's trip to France the previous summer, we realized we had mutual friends, and she was very open about what life was like living with breast cancer. She had just finished treatment and had been given the all-clear to travel, so she was excited to join our group.

Sterling walked all over Rome and the Amalfi Coast with a smile on her face. She was ALWAYS smiling. One afternoon we were walking through the Roman Forum when I happened to notice she was limping. Earlier that morning we had visited the Vatican Museums and toured the Colosseum, so it had been a long day. When I stepped back to walk with her, I suggested that we could sit on a bench and the group would pick us up on the way back. She laughed. "Oh no. Look at me ... I am in ITALY. I just walked through the Colosseum. I feel great and I don't want to miss a second." And she didn't.

During the planning for our second group trip last September, an opening came up at the last minute (literally 10 days before our trip) so I reached out to Sterling to see if she wanted to take that spot. There was a flurry of phone calls and texts that weekend to discuss details. She was on a new medication and for the first time in months felt energetic, so when she checked with her doctor he told her to go to Italy! In the end, though, there was too much on the calendar with family obligations to make the trip. But this was a good thing! We agreed that life is pretty grand when you're too busy for a trip to Italy. Then, two days before our trip, Sterling sent me the following text: "Wishing all of you safe travels and lots of laughter."

This past Saturday, Sterling passed away. It is hard to reconcile the idea of a vibrant, smiling Sterling with her not being here on this earth. We have lost someone very special, but heaven has gained a smiling soul. She will be remembered. She will be missed.