Happy New Year

2014 has been so many thing! To sum it up, I’d say adventurous and a helluva ride! To those of you whom have been along for the ride—thanks for sticking around. I hope my shenanigans have kept you half way entertained and I hope to provide a few laughs in the New Year.

Today I have a pretty neat and heartwarming story to start 2015 with a warm fuzzy.

I have been fortunate enough to call Marcia not only my friend but also my colleague for many years now. The woman is a wonder and I have no idea how she keeps up with what she does. She is an outstanding employee, a woman true to her word, and someone who would gladly give you the shirt off her own back. I am blessed to call her my friend and furthermore, thankful for all the ways she has positively influenced my life. I reach out to her in times of panic and she talks me off the ledge and reminds me what the journey is all about. She is truly the definition of selfless.

Sadly, Marcia lost her husband, Bob, to COPD this past February. He fought a long hard battle and Marcia stood by his side every step of the way. She became the breadwinner of the family, while also looking after her ailing husband and all the typical mundane responsibilities that come with being a member in today’s fast paced society.

Marcia gave her heart and soul to her husband and on February 8, 2014, Bob passed on. It was a painful day, as to be imagined. Marcia has an immense support system due to always putting others before herself and lending a hand at all times, even at times that force her to go completely out of her way. I can vouch for that…more times I can count, actually.

During Bob and Marcia’s marriage, Bob started a tradition for his wife, The Pandora bracelet. The Pandora bracelet held significant meaning as charms would be gifted to Marcia during special holidays (birthday’s, anniversaries, etc.) Over the years, she grew quite the collection.

Prior to Bob’s passing, he had his eye on a very special bead. The bead was made of 14K gold and incorporated a black spinel stone. It is absolutely breathtaking:

Seeing the bead was on the pricier end, Bob had been saving to purchase Marcia this bead and would frequently come into the Pandora store to admire the bead at the San Tan Village store in Arizona. Due to Bob’s frequent visits to check-in on the bead, the ‘Delicate Beauty’ became known as ‘The Bob Bead’.

Bob passed away before he was able to gift this ‘Delicate Beauty’ to Marcia. I got a phone call earlier this week from my father filling me in on a heartfelt story:

Apparently, the staff at the Pandora store that Bob frequented were aware of his passing. Unbeknownst to Marcia, or anyone for that matter, they had started a cash pool for ‘The Bob Bead’ to present to Marcia. Over Christmas, the staff at that particular Pandora location gifted Marcia with this beautiful bead to add to her collection of charms Bob had so lovingly added to over the years.

There are really no words. These women, Cindy, Amanda, and Karen had saved their own money around a very financially stressful time and were certain to add that last charm Bob had so deeply wanted to give his wife for Christmas.

I find beauty in the fact that even though Bob wasn’t able to personally gift the gem to Marcia himself, it happened in a way that showed such sincerity, graciousness, selflessness, and love by the Pandora employees. It brought a lot of us to tears, Marcia included.

I wanted to share this story to start your New Year with something a bit different, something warm and happy. We all suffer from time to time and life can be a bit complicated, or, a lot complicated. The death of a partner, well, I cannot even begin to imagine the pain and suffering. However, the universe somehow aligns itself and just when we think we can’t turn the next corner or approach the next door, the door is somehow already opened for us.

To the staff at Pandora at San Tan Village, I applaud you. What you did was beyond giving and loving. It didn’t just affect Marcia, it affected us all. Our clan thanks you for making her first Christmas without her amazing husband, Bob, an extremely special one.

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Happy New Year, Friends.