Meet “Allie Braitenberg”
I’m a young writer who found the love for writing through my grief experience of seeing my best friend walk the golden streets at the age of 4 ½ years old. Through writing, God has shown me that it’s a healthy outlet for me to process my emotions and also to be a platform for me to declare His goodness, faithfulness and love even through such loss.
Lila Kate smashed a whole lifetime of love, light, and laughter into 4 ½ years. She was known for her bear hugs with small pats on the back which were normally topped off with a “wet baby kiss”. She had a unique enthusiasm about this life that was shared with everyone. A healthy dose of happiness during love was given to one after spending time with Lila Kate.
Lila Kate was born with a diagnosis of Down Syndrome, which is a genetic disorder where individuals are given a full or partial copy of chromosome 21. In Lila Kate’s case, it was simply a partial copy which meant she wasn’t as “severe” and doctors saw that Lila kept improving with each doctor’s visit which then encouraged her parents to “go show that little girl off to the watching world.” Lila Kate was around 2 years old when her heath started looking promising.
But let’s backtrack, my wording will be God gave me a little sneak peak because when I met Lila Kate she was about 6 or 7 months old. It was like the “back stage” pass to see the famous actor or the favorite musician! I say this because Lila Kate’s immune system was very fragile and her parents had to be extra cautious of who was around their daughter. At the time I met her, I wasn’t aware of her health conditions nor the possibility of us instantly connecting where as I would soon be calling her my absolute best friend! But God did and that’s always enough, I keep trying to tell myself. Accepting that Lila Kate is in heaven is a daily task, but if God uses my experience to stir one heart towards Him and His word then it’s worth it.