Thursday, July 2, 2009

Life

"No time on earth is long enough to share with those we love or to prepare our hearts for good-bye" - unknown

Brandon lost his battle to cancer last night. I have not recently posted any updates on his condition... either because I have been too busy or because I was in denial. The cancer spread very rapidly and was everywhere within a few days. We knew that his life was in God's hands. We were expecting the worst and praying for a miracle. Thank you all for your support, thoughts, and prayers.
I included some photos in this blog... maybe for my own therapy. I dug them out to share with Jady (my other cousin) and I thought some of them would be good for this post.
Photo: 2 years ago... my wedding. Mallory (Brandon's girlfriend) caught the bouquet that night. I have been anticipating their engagement ever since. I think that day would have eventually come.
Photo: Christmas... only 6 months ago. At this point, there was no sign of any problems with his health.
Photo: This was also taken at Christmas. This is Brandon's mom (Cindy) and his daughter (Taylor). They are both so fun and bubbly. I wish I had a photo of Phil (Brandon's Dad) and Jordan (Brandon's little brother) readily available, but I don't. Jordan definitely has some of the same features as Brandon.
Photo: (Also a Christmas photo) This is Brandon and his awesome girlfriend, Mallory. She has been fantastic through this. I will always consider her part of our family.

We find comfort knowing that Brandon is no longer suffering. He is probably hunting and fishing in heaven now with Derek (if those sports are allowed in heaven). R.I.P. Brandon Stock - You will be missed deeply.