I guess you will never know unless you just do it...
Last week while reading a few blogs, I came upon a post by Rashida @ iheartlinen explaining that she'd just learned of her sister-in-law, Cassandra's, death. There was a link to a photo of Cassandra on flikr. The photo was a scan of a pic of her as a baby, and the original photo was bent up and a bit tattered. I was compelled to lift the pic and went to work on it in PhotoShop.
I did what I could, and pondered what I was going to do for a day or two. I decided to error on the side of butting in and forwarded the retouched photo with a note of condolence and my apologies if I stepped where I didn't belong. I received a very genrous note back from Rashida:
Thank you so much for such a kind gesture! The photo turned out beautifully and we are so pleased to have it! We thoroughly appreciate what you've done. Please don't feel like you are imposing at all. The world would be a better place if more people were like you and did such kindness for a stranger.
Today, while trying to figure this whole blogging thing out, I was checking out my 'stats' and found that my blog had been linked to. I followed the link, and was lead to a post by Rashida's husband, Mel. It was a very frank and touching account of the life that he, his mother, and Cassandra had experienced, and how they held on to each other for strength. At the top of the post was the picture of Cassandra that I'd sent to them, with a note of thanks to me below it, and a link to my blog.
It just amazes me that I am able to do something that I love and share it with others, even those I've never met. By doing so, I hope I'm making a difference, even just for a moment, in their lives, but I know for sure that I have been, without a doubt, touched in a way that I never knew I could be.
I was going to post the before and after pics here to share, but I feel they are best viewed in the context intended by Rashida and Mel. So, please take a minute to read about Cassandra, as relayed by both Rashida and Mel, as well as the comments left for them by their friends, family, and the strangers that have come to know them via their blogs.
iheartlinen: Wondering why...
flikr: The Cass. 1978-2008
Apt 11: Cassandra Camille Hale
