12.08.2010

Goodbye Elizabeth Edwards

When I met Elizabeth Edwards at Blogher 2007 after her keynote, she touched me. She touched a lot of us. I remember thinking she had a lot to offer the world. And that she had probably offered the world a lot already and we'd never know the extent of it.

I wish I could recall my brief meeting with her afterward as well as Jen Lemen did, but it struck me no less profoundly. What I remember is that she was kind and gracious, even when I might have lingered around her a little too long.

In 2008 I wrote a silly post at Momocrats about political birth announcements. She left a comment. I thought it would be nice if it lived here too.
When I was pregnant with our first child, my sister was also pregnant. We told our parents at Christmas when we gave each other baby presents. My sister gave me one of the those stuffed animal mobiles, blue gingham elephants. Our 90 year old Southern grandmother took one look at the present and, without missing a beat, said, "You couldn't find donkeys?" She may have too obsessed with politics as the earlier commenter said, but I sure miss her spirit. 
I sure will miss Elizabeth's spirit.


16 Comments:

Blogger Kathy (p/t writer, f/t mom) said...

lucky, lucky you. so jealous. thanks for sharing.

12/8/10, 8:26 AM  
Blogger Alex said...

i feel so badly for her kids and hope they have a lot of good people around them right now. and i hope her "husband" waits a very respectable time before stepping out with anyone els.

12/8/10, 8:53 AM  
Blogger Jessica said...

That is just lovely.

Thank you for sharing. She will be missed.

12/8/10, 9:19 AM  
Blogger Mrs. Q. said...

I was sad to hear the news last night, but reading this post made me cry. When I read her words, I thought of my own sister, our babies and how awful it is to imagine leaving them behind. I hope she, and her children, find peace.

12/8/10, 10:21 AM  
Blogger Tonya said...

Anyone who can go through what she did and still hold her head high is a class act in my book. I'm thinking and praying for her children...

12/8/10, 1:05 PM  
Blogger SUEB0B said...

Her story is so interesting because it is so complex. You couldn't put her in any one box - she was a super-bright attorney, political activist, grieving mom, late-in-life mom, wealthy woman, experienced infidelity, wrote books...in other words, she was like all of us, magnified and played out in public.

12/8/10, 2:45 PM  
Blogger Mom101 said...

Beautifully put SueBob.

12/8/10, 2:46 PM  
Blogger Jaelithe said...

MOMocrats totally changed my life, and it would not have existed without her encouragement. I wish I'd had a chance to thank her in person.

12/8/10, 4:50 PM  
Blogger Grandma Wendy said...

Lovely. Thank you for sharing.

12/8/10, 4:54 PM  
Blogger Issa said...

Such a sweet memory. Thank you for sharing and for keeping it classy as always.

12/8/10, 5:40 PM  
Blogger Marinka said...

What a lovely way to remember Elizabeth Edwards. I'm so hoping that cancer will stop taking people from us.

12/8/10, 8:26 PM  
Anonymous Stacey said...

Thank you for sharing that with us.
. . . and thank you Lady Elizabeth. You will be missed!

12/8/10, 8:59 PM  
Anonymous Doll Clothes Gal Pal said...

Very very lovely. :)

12/9/10, 5:36 AM  
Anonymous Paula/adhocmom said...

I was so sad to see her obit in the Times. I've never read her books and so want to.

12/9/10, 9:08 AM  
Anonymous NYCSingleMom said...

Very touching, thanks for writing this, I was a big fan. When I heard the news, I cried. She was an amazing woman and I dont know if I could endure what she did but she did with grace and dignity.
http://www.nycsinglemom.com

12/10/10, 1:47 PM  
Blogger Elizabeth @claritychaos said...

I love this story. Thanks for sharing.

12/13/10, 12:19 AM  

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