Call her Shawnee, Nay-Nay, or CA (family pet name), this young woman has made an impact on all of our lives, and our Allison made one on her. She, and we, are never to be the same and God has seen to that. She has learned that there are no coincidences, that a plan is laid out for all of us, and at 17 years of age, she has been given lessons that have had to be learned very quickly. She has been forced to mature, to come to understand life and death, and Allison is paving her way. The stories are too many to be told, but we carry them in our hearts, souls, and minds. We are making sense of a chance meeting when she was 13 and Allie was 19. Two unlikely beings, brought together by God and fate, making a connection that will last a lifetime.
It all began that summer when the now famous story began to unfold, Allison desiring to spend a summer by the sea, with her aunt and uncle, away from some pressures that were building where she could think and help make decisions about her next step in life. Asking her Uncle Mike if she could stay, he of course agreed, if, and only if she secured a job. In less than half an hour she had a "job" as a camp counselor at the nearby site where children were brought in from the inner city to spend weeks at Sunset Point in Hull, MA, south of Boston. So, she began her summer of freedom from us, a new view, and hard work as a counselor. She loved it, she thrived, and found herself in many ways that summer, and the next, when she returned to stay another summer. There was no place like Aunt Karen and Uncle Mike's and they catered to her every whim! This haven is where she found her comfort.
But enter Shawnee, an inner city 8th grader, and from what I understand, there was the connection from the start. Allison became a big sister in many ways and their bond was indescribable. The energy and spark was felt from just the stories, and when we met, sometime later, well, it was evident why and how this union came to be. But we didn't meet Shawnee in person until Allison was gone, until she had passed from this life, and the cancer and ultimate death took its toll on Shawnee. How can any of us begin to make sense of it, let alone a young woman who talked to Allison daily, who chatted into the night, who listened to Allison "lecture" her when necessary, or guide her with her decisions. Allison encouraged her to be a "big girl" through the cancer, and promised Shawnee it would be alright. What Shawnee has come to know, and all of us have, as well, is that it IS alright, it just isn't what we had planned.
Time passed and Shawnee made it through that sophomore year by writing every essay about Miss Allison, as she always was known to call her, but her grades dropped and she was broken hearted. She had never expected this. But she understands and knows a loving God and her family is supportive. I'm sure at times they didn't know how to help the grieving Shawnee. Still, the spirit of Allison spurred her on and one day, it was time for her to make her first trip to visit us, to see Allison's home, and to be with her dog, her things, her family. She spent a week last summer and immediately it was as if we had known her all of our lives. We did, we knew her through the eyes and heart of our Allison, but now we got to experience this relationship firsthand. We had great talks and she tried to make sense of what had happened, she saw signs while visiting that Allison is never truly gone, but lives on in ways we would have never understood. Some of those "signs" we experienced together and we knew, we just knew, what they meant.
Shawnee has used the strength from her family, herself, and her friend, Allison, along with her new adopted big sister, Jennifer, to motivate and do well. She brought her grades up, kept her goals, and played basketball to the best of her ability. On the anniversary of Allison's passing in 2008 there was the most important basketball game, and just as she thought there was no hope of winning, she felt the strength and dignity of Miss Allison in her own life, and Shawnee went on to help win the game. She is a star in many ways, and now she has her own bright star always shining for her. She is guided and found her way back for another visit, just this week. Another visit and another opportunity to find answers. And she did. She hears her friend tell her to be a big girl, to stay strong, to reach for the stars. She knows there are obstacles to overcome, but she is doing that, step by step, following in the legacy Allison left. Who knew? Who would ever suppose the unlikely connection of the heart, the "chance" meeting that summer day, such a lifetime ago? Who knew what would evolve and that she would find her way through adversity, prejudice, and obstacles, find her way through the words and actions of one brave and courageous young woman who loved her from the start?
We were so blessed to have this visit, this time, this laughter, this gift of a girl who has become part of us, who by her very existence inspires us to be better and to give back in the name of our beloved daughter. Thank you, Allison, for your spirit and spunk and bravery and determination. You keep on inspiring and wondrous things are happening all around us. The stars are aligned and you make us smile. Thank you for bringing the light and love of Shawnee to us and for the gifts you give her, too. She is being "guided" by her own angel, her own sweet revelation that she is where she is supposed to be, now and forever. We are all awestruck by the love, the light, the hope that prevails, knowing you are serving a higher purpose than any of us could have imagined.
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