What We're Reading Now
Brownies for Breakfast
17 February 2015
Allison read the Brownies for Breakfast Facebook Invitation from Mary Linn Bergstrom and was grateful for a brave mama’s gift of balance to others.
Tags: allison read, balance, courage, grief, social media
I don’t know Mary Linn Bergstrom, but like many people in Charlottesville, VA, I sure have thought about her a lot in the last two months. Mary’s six-year old daughter, Chloe Rose Leong, was killed when a reckless driver ran a stop sign.
I’ve written about grief before in an effort to help myself and others heal, but I don’t know if any of it would be helpful to Mary Linn and other parents who lose their children too soon. What I know for sure is that Mary Linn is getting through her grief by giving something back to all of us.
You see this brave mama has created an event tomorrow called Brownies for Breakfast. I hope you'll view the Facebook invitation, but I’m including the text here in case you’re not on Facebook.
“Chloe Rose Leong was my beautiful six-year old daughter. She was killed in a car crash on December 22, 2014, when a reckless driver ran a stop sign.
On the last day of Chloe's life, I made her brownies for breakfast. I wanted to start the holiday baking, she loved chocolate, and I wanted her to have a super special treat on the first day of her Christmas vacation from school.
On February 18, 2015, in honor of what would have been her 7th birthday, I invite you to do brownies for breakfast, or find your own ways to slow down, spend time with, and truly be in gratitude for your family, friends, and especially any children in your life. See what happens if you drop your lists and expectations, just for one day, and live like these 24 hours were all you had.
Please do share with any and all!”
Tomorrow morning after a 6:00 a.m. call and before my 9:30 a.m. Body Combat class at Gold’s Gym, I’ll be baking brownies in honor of Chloe. That’s not something I usually do during my super productive work time before the gym and that’s exactly why I’m doing it. I’ll be sharing those brownies with all my pals after Body Combat and asking them to enjoy one with me or give one to a friend. Eating brownies after a workout isn’t something we usually do either and that’s exactly why I know they’ll enjoy them with me or give them to a friend. Then I’ll mail the rest of the brownies to my 7, 9, and 11-year old niece and nephews in Durham, NC.
24,000 people have already accepted Mary Linn’s invitation on Facebook. I hope you’ll join us either by eating a brownie or finding another way to, “slow down, spend time with, and truly be in gratitude for your family, friends, and especially any children in your life.”
Thank you, Mary Linn. This is one of the most sobering balance lessons ever.
p.s. I’m making Duncan Hines Chewy Fudge Brownies because they remind me of my childhood, but you can find Chloe’s favorite homemade recipe on the Facebook invite page. Do a search on these hashtags and you’ll discover all the special ways people are celebrating Chloe’s life. #browniesforChloe #browniesforbreakfast
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