The time when everything turns Pink

If someone said three years from now
You’d be long gone
I’d stand up and punch them out
Cause they’re all wrong

I know better
Cause you said forever
And ever, who knew?

-Pink, “Who Knew?”

A woman passed away a few days ago.  I never had a chance to meet her, but when she got married and had two children, this surely wasn’t part of her plans.

Her husband is a fraternity brother of mine; he’s the same age as me. His wife the same age as my wife. Their oldest child the same age as my oldest.

Three years ago, when the doctors told her she had breast cancer, this wasn’t the plan. It wasn’t supposed to end like this.

But sometimes, without cause, without warning, and without reason, things happen, and it turns your world upside-down. It could happen to you. It could happen to me.

To some extent, since you’re reading a diabetes blog, it probably has.

Somewhat ironically (or perhaps appropriately), her passing occurred in the early hours of breast cancer awareness month. The month where the entire country is bathed in pink for that very cause — pink ribbons, pink sports jerseys, pink network television logos — it’s everywhere. Even if you’re hiding under a rock, you’re bound to see it somewhere.

Why am I bringing this up? Well, because next month is Diabetes Awareness Month. Without a doubt, there will be folks who are upset that the world isn’t glowing blue. There will be parallels drawn of the effectiveness of the pink campaign versus the relative obscurity of the blue one. Some, I venture to say, will even harbor some animosity towards the dominating pink team.

Don’t.

This isn’t a competition. Lives are at stake.

Whether your particular cause is breast cancer awareness, diabetes awareness, epilepsy awareness (which also stakes claim to November with the color purple, by the way), or something else, to those affected, it’s a life-altering situation. In some cases, it’s the only thing that matters.

It could happen to any of us – without cause, without warning, and without reason. It could turn your world upside-down.

So please, go easy on folks who choose to support a different cause, a different campaign, a different friend or family member. If they choose not to endorse diabetes causes right now, that’s okay. There are others that are equally deserving.

Tonight, I plan to go see my friend to pay my respects. I haven’t seen him in years. We’ve corresponded occasionally via Facebook, saying that we “should” plan to get together “sometime”, but it never advanced any further than that.

So my other plea to you is this: don’t wait for tragedy to strike before rekindling old friendships. Pick up the phone and make plans, while the possibility is still there.