Brigitte Ortiz | THE RIDER
My family is just like any other. We aren’t perfect and we have our ups and down, but we would do anything for each other.
When I was a little girl, I grew up next door to my uncle. My cousin and I were two years apart and we always used to play. We practically did everything together. Even when she moved to a different house, we still tried to visit each other. We were almost inseparable.
My uncle decided to move to Mexico when I was in third grade. She was the only cousin I was really close to but after she moved to a different country, we lost touch.
We would still video call my uncle and we would see each other that way, but it wasn’t the same. Recently, she got sick from what the doctors said was colitis, a chronic digestive disease characterized by inflammation of the inner lining of the colon.
The doctors eventually performed surgery on her. She felt good for a while but not even a month after her surgery, she started to get high fevers again.
I remember the last time we video called. My mom, grandma and I were outside my house, showing her how it had been remodeled. She didn’t know I had bought my first car and she said, “Wow Brigitte, we got a car?” She was still her fun, strong self.
That was the last time I talked to her before our family got the news that she had died. My family was devastated. She was my uncle’s firstborn and everybody loved her.
I was in shock and couldn’t believe how fast everything was happening. My grandma and uncle were hit by her death the most, so the least we could all do is come together and stay strong for them.
It was not until afterward that I realized we all take advantage of the time we each have on this earth. The rest of our cousins made a group chat and we all decided to try to stay in touch because we never know when we might be seeing someone for the last time.
