Tripp's Love and My Happiness
Tripp's birthday is tomorrow. He has been at the forefront of my thoughts all week and I have done quite well not letting my grief creep in. I have been reminding myself that the best way to express the love I feel for Tripp is to be happy. I know from the depths of my soul that Tripp doesn't want me to be sad and I feel like I finally have the strength to better honor his wish.
About a month ago I read THIS guest post on Kelle Hampton's blog. I was touched by the writing and the story and was inspired to act. I grabbed a package of Hershey's Hugs and left them on the doorstep of a random house. I wrote the hash tag #honoringmaura on the bag and tweeted a picture of my kindness with the same hash tag (at the request of the post's author). As I drove away after my drop off, I knew this was something I wanted to do for Tripp's birthday.
Tripp has touched my life in ways I could never begin to express. I am grateful and thankful that he was brought into my life. I know my life is not the only one he has touched. The last 3 years have been filled with conversations and messages about the ways he has impacted other people's lives. This week he will not only be at the forefront of my thoughts, if you are here reading, he will more than likely be creeping into your thoughts a little more than he normally might.
I want this week to be about love and as I think back to 3 years ago I am still in awe with the the amount of love we felt from family, friends, acquaintances, and strangers. I am going to do all that I can to fill my heart with love this week, but Tripp died and I know there will be moments where I won't be able to control the sense of loss I will feel. I would love in these moments to be reminded of your love for him. If you light a candle for Tripp this week, or do a random act of kindness in his memory, I would love to hear about it. You could tweet it with the hash tag #rememberingtripp, or you could email me at jmf322(at)gmail(dot)com. I am going to save looking at the emails and tweets for moments I really need a smile. I will also be tweeting the things I do to honor and love him this week.
If you aren't on Twitter, you can still read tweets. Just go to www.twitter.com and search #honoringmaura, #rememberingtripp or any hashtag you wish to read about. You can follow me on Twitter @jmhammy.
About a month ago I read THIS guest post on Kelle Hampton's blog. I was touched by the writing and the story and was inspired to act. I grabbed a package of Hershey's Hugs and left them on the doorstep of a random house. I wrote the hash tag #honoringmaura on the bag and tweeted a picture of my kindness with the same hash tag (at the request of the post's author). As I drove away after my drop off, I knew this was something I wanted to do for Tripp's birthday.
Tripp has touched my life in ways I could never begin to express. I am grateful and thankful that he was brought into my life. I know my life is not the only one he has touched. The last 3 years have been filled with conversations and messages about the ways he has impacted other people's lives. This week he will not only be at the forefront of my thoughts, if you are here reading, he will more than likely be creeping into your thoughts a little more than he normally might.
I want this week to be about love and as I think back to 3 years ago I am still in awe with the the amount of love we felt from family, friends, acquaintances, and strangers. I am going to do all that I can to fill my heart with love this week, but Tripp died and I know there will be moments where I won't be able to control the sense of loss I will feel. I would love in these moments to be reminded of your love for him. If you light a candle for Tripp this week, or do a random act of kindness in his memory, I would love to hear about it. You could tweet it with the hash tag #rememberingtripp, or you could email me at jmf322(at)gmail(dot)com. I am going to save looking at the emails and tweets for moments I really need a smile. I will also be tweeting the things I do to honor and love him this week.
If you aren't on Twitter, you can still read tweets. Just go to www.twitter.com and search #honoringmaura, #rememberingtripp or any hashtag you wish to read about. You can follow me on Twitter @jmhammy.
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| This is one of the happiest moments of my life. As I sat here I knew Tripp would die, and yet the love and joy I felt holding him in my arms was immense. If I concentrate really hard I can still remember what it felt like to feel his chest expand on my arm. |
Dear Tripp,
ReplyDeleteI never met you but I wanted you and your mom and dad and your brothers to know what a blessing it is to know you. You brought people together. You taught me about love and grief and life. You will always be a sweet little baby, and that makes me both happy and sad. That's another thing you taught me - paradox. Your mama wants us to act with love to remember you. I'm a writer so words come easy but for your special day I promise to do something hard. Not sure what it will be, but I'll need your help. I'm not good at reaching out to strangers. But I know you'll show me what needs to be done, and who could ever turn down a little cutie like you! Happy birthday sweetie. I'm glad to know you.
This post made me cry ... random acts of kindness are so important. My dad is in the hospital right now and I have been visiting with him lots as well as an elderly lady who is next to him. She has no family, never married and no children so she is very lonely ... I know she likes to visit and today I left her a book to read which my dad was not interested in ... she was thrilled and I will do more tomorrow! Thanks Jordan
ReplyDeleteTripp is in my thoughts today. His reach is far. His story touches many. I will keep him in mind while caring for those I love.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful photo; beautiful memory. Hugs & thoughts to you today.
ReplyDelete