"Give and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you."
-Luke 6:38
So last night my sorority, Kappa Kappa Gamma, attempted to pull a fast one on our dear sister,
Catalina Ritzinger. She was practically fresh out of the car from a fairytale weekend at Coachella and wanted nothing more than to sleep in her cloud like bed for a few days. To her (possible) dismay,
we had other plans.
A little back story: Catalina is a two time cancer survivor and is now faced with an above the knee amputation. Hands down one of the strongest people I know, in every sense of the word. I'm a natural "fixer" and as soon as I found out the amputation news I wanted to comfort Cata and instill upon her my 20-year-old wisdom. Well, lo and behold my words fell short and I was left standing there in a puddle of tears. That moment taught me two things,
1) I don't know everything
2) Sometimes people don't need to be fixed, only heard.
Despite those epiphanies I still wanted to do something to make her life a little easier. As the Event Chair for Kappa, I'm given a hefty budget and had some money left over at the end of the semester. I, along with two other wonderful sisters combined our budgets and decided to put on a big celebration in honor of Cata. What started as an idea bloomed into a night filled with love, friends, family, kind strangers, laughter, tears, hugs, big hearts, barbecue, fiddlers, mason jars, yellow daisies, string lights, flaming lanterns (and almost trees), boots and most importantly hope.
Hope for Catalina.
A hope that this obstacle will turn into a minor speed bump.
A hope that her strength, resiliency and bravery will be enough.
A hope that no matter where she turns she'll find a friendly face and warm embrace.
A hope that promises a better day, filled with sunshine and joy.
A hope that, at the end of the day, she knows how much we love her.
God was smiling down on us last night. I sensed it in the warm Spring air, I saw it on the faces of all the people that came to support, I knew it when the lanterns ceased to burn down Greek Row and I felt it in the deepest part of my heart. I'm so grateful to be a part of something bigger than myself and something that cares so much for the people around it.
So here's to you, Cata, may your bravery inspire the rest of us to lead a more fearless life!
 |
| Howdy! |
 |
| The Setup |
 |
| Country Swing Band! |
 |
| All the amazing people who came out to support |
 |
| Group Hug! |
 |
| Never Could I Ever Have Chosen Something Better <3 |
