Eva Markvoort, CF warrior, lived a big life

Parent Cafe
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<p>At this moment, I’m watching the live streaming Celebration of Love for Eva Markvoort, a cystic fibrosis patient who passed away on March 27th. </p>

<p>She started blogging (Google 65 red roses livejournal) about life with her illness several years ago. She shared the truth – her sadness and pain and fear. But she also lived life in a way that we all should aspire to. She was vibrant, passionate, and cherished life – even when life was looking out the window of a hospital room.</p>

<p>She starred in a documentary called 65 Red Roses that showed her progressing illness and eventual lung transplant. The transplant gave her a little more time, but eventually she went into chronic rejection. She kept posting – even by dictating to her sister – until the last. She was days away from being 26. </p>

<p>March 25:</p>

<p>"i’m at that point now
i’m done with the poetics
asking for help
my sister is helping me write
actually helping me write</p>

<p>the medications have been piling up
they are taking their toll
i am supersaturated with medications
i’ve been medically missing in action for two days
the docs started taking me off some of them to see how i would manage</p>

<p>and i am not managing
not managing at all</p>

<p>i’m drowning in the medications</p>

<p>i can’t breathe</p>

<p>every hour
once an hour</p>

<p>i can’t breathe</p>

<p>something has to change"</p>

<p>Eva’s few missing non-major credits were forgiven by the University of Vancouver, who rushed to give her a degree in the days before her death. Merely finishing a college degree was one of Eva’s biggest dreams.</p>

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<p>I followed her blog for ages. Soooo sad. What an amazing woman. </p>

<p>Just to add a bit of correction, she got her degree from the University of Victoria (which is on Vancouver Island).</p>

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<p>Oh, thank you for the correction. I think I made the mistake since they both start with V.</p>

<p>I’m glad someone else here has been reading her blog. It’s hard to explain to people how I can be mourning for this person I never even met, but I really did love her, just as many thousands of others did. She was truly an inspiration. She knew how to live, even while she was dying. Whenever I think of her, I hug my partner and my daughter and tell them how much I love them. I feel that she has really changed my view on the importance of letting those around us know how precious they are to us, and creating special memories and traditions to cherish. I’m sure that sounds trite, but somehow her life and even death touched a part of me that eloquent quotes and advice never could.</p>

<p>Her memorial service made it even more apparent how very loved she was. The place was apparently so packed they had to turn people away, and I was in an online chat watching the livestream. Somehow people from all over the world were united in “love, love, love” by Eva.</p>

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<p>I completely understand. After watching her farewell video in February, I was depressed for days! I couldn’t visit the blog, then was so surprised when I finally did and saw she was hanging in there! Then I got to thinking she would beat it and could not believe she finally had to go.</p>