Rebecca was one of the first women I met who had the same diagnosis as me. I told her husband the other day that when I went in for my first infusion, the chemo nurse calmed my nerves by telling me about another woman who had just received the same regiment and went off the next day to sheer sheep at Old Sturbridge Village. Being part of such an exclusive group of people in the era of social networking, I knew immediately that she was talking about Rebecca. The mental image of her at work out in the sun totally unaffected by what was dripping into my veins gave me a tremendous amount of relief, probably the first respite since my diagnosis.
I feel extremely fortunate to have had her friendship over the past few years. Regardless of the heartbreak of knowing she's gone from this world, I'll keep those first images of her with her beautiful long red hair and her gentle spirit at the forefront of my memories.