For Maddie

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I sit here today waiting. Waiting for photos of a little one to upload to my site. A sweet little girl. A beloved child. It is not an announcement, but a memorial. I cry just writing that.

People have always told me I should do slideshow tributes for funerals. I have always said no. The turnaround is too quick. I have two small children that will not accommodate that. There would be lots of money in it they say – everybody dies. I don’t do this for the money. I would have a different business model if I did. Everyone gets born too, I’d rather do that.

My mother has worked in nursing homes my whole life. I grew to understand our life cycle at an early age. I have a very large family so I have been going to funerals since I was a child. But funeral video tributes is just somewhere I didn’t have the strength to go. My brother died 14 years ago and I still have not put all of his photos together. Imagine that? That’s what I do for other people and I have not done that for him, for me, for my parents.

A couple of months ago I joined the Twitter community. The first week I had no idea what it could possibly be useful for. I just didn’t get it. Then slowly I saw it’s value, making connections, strangers writing about my business, a sense of community. I woke the other morning to see that someone named mamasphor was having a very hard time. The tweets were flying. Baby is sick. Pray for Maddie. Then just as suddenly – Maddie passed away. There was just a moment of grief and then an outpouring of support and retweets. People virtually holding this woman up through her grief. Her best friend raising money for the March of Dimes in lightening fast speed. Organizing help for all sorts of things that a grieving parent need not worry about. Like a video to be played at her daughter’s memorial service. Someone that I had connected with on Twitter suggested to her friend that she contact me to see if I could help. I saw the tweet and didn’t hesitate, of course I would help.

So here I sit, waiting for photos to come from across the country, crying again. I hope that I can create something beautiful for Maddie and for her parents. Then maybe I will get all of my brother’s photos out…

Rest in Peace sweet Maddie.

Maddie – http://remembermaddie.com
What you can do –UnDomestic Diva
to donate to the march of Dimes in Maddie’s name go here…
to donate to help Maddie’s parents go here