I recently posted about Sarah, who inspires me in so many ways, in her determination and faith, but this post is about another person who inspires me. Jacque.
Like Sarah, Jacque is a friend I met while attending college. She played saxophone in the band and was a brother of Kappa Kappa Psi. Also like Sarah, she is someone with whom I was friendly, but we didn't "hang out" a lot. I liked her. How could you not? She always had a ready smile and a positive attitude, no matter the situation. And even back then, she was a woman of faith. I remember that she didn't drink. She used to have Pepsi parties. There were a few who smirked at such a thing, and even though I drank (although not until mid-sophomore year), I thought it was cool that she stuck to her beliefs. And even though others might have judged her, she didn't judge them in return, drinking was just something she chose not to do. I don't know why, but that always stuck with me.
Fast forward to 2011. Also like Sarah, Jacque and I reconnected on Facebook. I don't think we particularly conversed a lot, but occasionally "liked" or commented on each other's posts. And then in September, came the diagnosis. Jacque was diagnosed with breast cancer. What? WHAT?!?! "But she's 33," I thought. MY age. How can this be? It hit me hard. "This is something older people get," I thought. Both my mom and my mother-in-law had it and THANK GOD, beat it. Perhaps it was just difficult to imagine cancer striking a person who is so full of light. She has such JOY in the Lord. But cancer doesn't care. It doesn't care if you are a drug addict or a saint. There's no rhyme or reason, it just IS.
Fortunately, the Lord cares. And Jacque knows it. Like deep down in her heart, without a doubt, knows she is loved by God. And what an amazing GIFT that is. I would come to learn of this tremendous faith in the following months, but in the meantime, I just wanted to DO something. But what could I do? I can't even remember the last time I saw her other than on Facebook. We don't pick up the phone and chat regularly. So I prayed. And I contacted a mutual friend, Stacy, who I knew was much more in touch with Jacque, and I offered to make ribbons for us to put on our instruments at the Homecoming Parade. I didn't want to be presumptuous. Who was I to organize something like this? We're not BFFs. But you know what? I didn't care. It seemed like the right thing to do. Anything to lift her spirits. I wanted her to know that she was important to us (the Bearcat family) and that we were thinking about her. I later got a message that she had appreciated it and that's all that mattered to me.
Throughout the following months, Jacque would undergo surgery and treatment. Because she was only 33 and they found some cancer in her lymph nodes, the treatment would be fairly agressive. Several different chemo medicines followed by radiation. She would deal with all of these treatments while trying to continue teaching in her 4th grade classroom. She underwent a mastectomy and lost her hair and had setbacks and developed lymphedema. She had ups and most certainly had downs, but she fought and most importantly, she never lost faith. Almost every post of her Caring Bridge blog would include some sort of scripture or some piece of wisdom or truth that she had come across. Many people throw their hands up and ask God, "Why?". They get angry and even lose their faith altogether. I can't pretend to know what went through her mind. Perhaps she had moments of doubt, but as far as I could see through her posts, she had nothing but unswerving faith. She found blessings where many would see none. And I was INSPIRED. She used her cancer as an opportunity to show us what faith is all about. To show us what TRUSTING THE LORD is all about and it was amazing. In her most recent post (a couple of weeks ago), she was finishing up her radiation. She still has to continue taking herceptin until March, so she's not done with her battle yet, but she still remains strong in her faith and her belief that God is using her for His greater purpose. And I believe that must be the case. Because He has used her to inspire me. To have faith. To trust. To believe.
In October, I will be running in the Susan G. Komen 5K in her (and my mom and mother in law's) honor. Running is something that she enjoyed before her cancer and she has asked that if people have the means, to donate money or participate in a run/walk to support research and promote awareness. I have decided to do both. I donated money to Stacy's team in Kansas City and will be participating in my own run in Omaha in October. For someone who has battled and fought with such courage and grace, what choice do I have but to honor this request? I'm looking forward to it.
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