Hope has died

She recently married her sister (as an officiant)

me with Hope's beloved peanuts as she called them shortly after their first birthday

Less than 2 months ago, she brought the twins to Shanna's house to play with Tessa

the twins

I met Hope at a breast cancer yoga class more than 2 years ago. She was such a tiny person with long black hair very stylishly dressed. We instantly hit it off despite the differences in age and culture. She was so bright and friendly, I suppose anyone who met her would like her. I gradually learned she had stage 4 breast cancer despite her healthy looks. It had been in her brain, though she successfully had treatment for that, and liver. She also came to the cooking class where we'd spend most of the time yakking. I was surprised to learn she was expecting twins (very tiny body) but a surrogate was carrying them. She was told when she was initially diagnosed with early stage BC, the chemo would probably destroy her ovaries so she banked some embryos as she had not begun a family yet. By the time she had them implanted, the cancer came back.

After the twins were born, I didn't see her for a while (except on Facebook). Then one day, she showed up for class. Her hair gone, her face bloated and her skin yellow. Uh-oh. The twins were now a year and she invited me over to see them. We had a very pleasant day. She seemed to get stronger and asked if her babies could play with Tessa. As Shanna lives near her, we arranged a fun playdate in September. When she got back from her sister's wedding, she was going to have Shanna and Tessa over. That didn't happen. She died two days ago. I went to the funeral home last night. So sad. She was only a bit older than Shanna and leaves those cute little girls.

She was one of the happiest people I ever met despite her must knowing that she was going to die soon. She said she never paid attention to statistics and lived like they did not matter. She was totally devoted to the babies who brought her much joy. I kept assuming that she'd find another way to extend her life, as she had before.

I am so glad I knew her.
Below is the photo they gave out at the funeral home with the family in Korean traditional dress: