Essay: For Becky
My friend Becky liked to say that fall in Alaska is the last week of September. She’ll miss it this year. Becky died on August 2, after courageously living for seven years with a form of ovarian cancer. Like the leaves that change color and fall too fast this far north, Becky taught me about holding on and letting go, and about savoring the beauty in between. Here’s what Becky hung on to: good recipes, dozens of friends from various parts of her life and a lot of stuff in her house that she might need later or was saving to give to someone else. It was all part of her charm. Becky was the friend who always called on your birthday, asked questions about your life and gave great tips on things like where to get a cheap-but-good Chardonnay (Costco) and healthy-but-good chicken nuggets for my kids (also Costco). She was a self-described maven who meticulously researched and tried out new products, restaurants and, eventually cancer treatments, to find the best. It was easy to hang on to
