Saturday, May 13, 2006

Death of a Blogger

The Blogoverse is a strange place filled with the thoughts, musings, lives, hopes, frustrations and most of all words of millions of nameless people, most of whom are just trying to get from A to B.

Occasionally, a voice surfaces above the babble to speak loudly, strongly and with the kind of clarity we all hope we could achieve.

Such was the voice of CancerBaby who wrote about her battle with ovarian cancer.

We all pulled for CancerBaby as her treatments yinned and yanged. Her hold on life was strong and her outlook totally positive. CancerBaby’s gift for writing was a beacon of optimism. Such clarity is rare and she was clear and strong and purposeful and…

Right up to the end.

CancerBaby, whose name we are told was Jessica, died today at age 33.

I don’t know why her death has affected me as it has, other than as a fellow blogger there is a form of kinship that results from reading blogs, commenting on blogs and receiving feedback. The Blogosphere is mostly a fun place. Although I never received an acknowledgement from CancerBaby, I nevertheless poured in my support and wished her well.

CancerBaby, Jessica, is a total stranger to me, but I feel a profound sadness at her loss. It also causes me to reflect on the social phenomenon that is blogging and how it might affect the relationships between people in the future. It can only help.

Rest in peace, Jessica.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

What a nice tribute.

Anonymous said...

It IS truly amazing, this world of blogging. So many people we've never physically "met", but yet they become part of our everyday lives and we know them closer than we know many of our real life friends.

Shalee said...

Time and nearness alone does not determine a friendship. When one communes with another, sharing pieces of each other, a bond is formed despite distance, age or background. I am utterly amazed at how easy and open one can be in a "public diary". It reminds me that we all want to matter in this life and to be accepted.