Little Steps, One Day At A Time...

It has been awhile since I have put something up. I have been keeping busy with financial things which need to be taken care of; things that come up here and there, and many thank you cards. I'm doing pretty good so far. I think because John and I had talked about this happening at some point; not necessarily by the way things happened with the infection. We knew the Leukemia coming back after the transplant was not good, so that gave us time to start to grasp what could happen.

A part of me thinks he knew because he always said Luke was with him, that I shouldn't be a widow at 30 years old and that everything would be OK. It sucks for all of us that he is gone, but amongst the many things that keep me going is knowing that he doesn't have to fight this awful disease anymore and knowing the man that JOHN BUSKIRK was and still is, the people that he touched, inspired and loved shows what he accomplished in his 33 years of life. The amount of people that I have talked to that say they have learned so much from him and they want to change their life because of him makes me so happy because that is what he wanted to do.

Since John passed on January 10Th he has been playing some tricks on many people; Coach Timonere's sink blew up, McGruder's dishwasher broke, Jan lost his license and credit card, the dogs have flipped out not quite the same and my brother tore his ACL the day after the funeral. Many of you got to meet my parents dog Dewey. If you knew him, you know that he could be very "friendly" whether you were human or a dog. He got fixed on Tuesday...but he hasn't quite changed his ways yet!

Many of you also know that the school was trying to get a patch with John's number 55 on it. Apparently there is a rule against that so they went with a black circle on their left shoulder of their jerseys. I went to lunch with some of the senior football players on Tuesday and they said Coach Penna took all the jerseys and put the number on anyway. My dad and I went to the game that night and nothing was ever said and shouldn't be. It doesn't hurt anything and it is a great tribute to John. The boys are taking such good care of me always checking on me by calling or texting even though this is such a hard time for them too.

My parents have surprised me with a trip to the Bahamas in the middle of February. It will be good to get away for a few days. It is somewhere John had always wanted to go since I always told him how amazing it was there. I will be returning to GATORS spring football practice in mid April. I can't wait to get there and see Coach Meyer and the National Champions. I will head to south Florida after that for a week or so.

John had always said he should write a book. I hope to start that on the plane rides and on the beach. We are still working on some tributes and memorials so I will keep you posted. I will be in the Cleveland Marathon on May 17Th. I'm going to do the half along with some nurses from Taussig, Jan is doing the full, and possibly Coach Timonere! We are all doing it through TEAM IN TRAINING, the foundation that raises money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. We will be doing this in John and Luke's memory. If you are interested in this please let me know. You can participate in TEAM IN TRAINING events all over the nation. I think I also have plans to be at the finish line for Jan after the bike ride in Tahoe in June.

Coach Timonere put up what my brother and mom wrote and spoke at the funeral along with some pictures below. Thanks for all your continued support and prayers.