One week

Dear My Sweet Peanut Bean Queen Torby,

It’s been a week since I held you and told you you are the bravest and most beautiful soul I have ever known. I can’t lie: the days since have been filled with a surreal and indescribable pain. They say that grief is just love with nowhere to go and, well, I love you more than anything.

But I’ve also found comfort in the realization that so many others love you, too. You are so admired and treasured by people far and wide — even people who have never met you can tell that you are a once-on-this-earth being. Nothing makes me happier than to hear how beloved you are, and to hear how clear I make it to the world that I adore you.

I will continue to walk through life in your spirit. Living beautifully, accepting myself, protecting my energy while also treating those I love with gentleness and sweetness beyond compare. You embodied the “I don’t want to be in a situation for even an hour where I’m not enjoying myself” philosophy more than anyone. I will be asking myself “what would Torby do?” every day.

There is so much more to say that I don’t have the words for at the moment. I know our conversations will continue to evolve, even if they might look a little different now. For today, it’s a beautiful sunny morning and I feel you in the patches of light resting on my blanket.

I love you forever.

Your friend,

Katie