Love Notes

Before Thanksgiving I remembered reading about a little girl named Elena Desserich. Her story was so touching that I incorporated her method of sharing her love into my own way of sharing. You see, Elena passed away from an inoperable form of cancer when she was only 6. However, her wisdom has proved to be far beyond that of a 6 year old in my opinion. After her death, her parents and little sister started finding literally hundreds of love notes that Elena left hidden all over the house for them. This beautiful child understood and had the vision to leave her family with the most profound method of comfort and lasting love. How often do we get the opportunity to fully express our love for those we care about and let it go? Some of us have a lifetime and waste it and yet a child of only 6 has left behind more love notes than most of us see in an entire lifetime. I am reminded of a quote from one of my favorite movies, "Thirty seconds well used is a lifetime." What can you accomplish and how much love can you share in just 30 seconds? It seems to me that Elena, accomplished multitudes in 6 short years.

So how have I incorporated Elena's legacy into my life? I've taken up writing love notes again. Nothing long. They don't need to be. When I was younger I would write pages and pages which was great at the time, but now I am enjoying hiding my own stash of love notes for my family to find. I often update my status on my social sites sending out words of love. I constantly tell my family and friends that I love them. I guess this is why I love Elena's story so much. I want to take every opportunity to love to the best of my ability. Now, I can find another way to share. I urge you to do the same.

The picture that I have posted is one of Elena's drawings. Her family plans to publish a book called Notes Left Behind with a collection of her love notes. What a wonderful tribute to a life well lived.

I love you.