It's finally May, and the kids in my kindergarten classes couldn't be happier! Their excitement is pretty contagious, and I'm really happy that it's May as well. Although, to be honest, that also might have something to do with the fact that it's officially the month I graduate college now!

Seventeen years ago, and I can't even believe it's been that long, my aunt was killed in a car accident. My mom's big sister, a mom of a four- and two-year-old, and a woman loved by all, was taken from this earth too early due to circumstances out of anyone's control. Every May 1st is a time for us to reflect and remember my aunt; from the pictures or memories we share on Facebook, to the thoughts that collect in our own heads without surfacing in conversation.
My aunt never had the chance to meet any of my siblings. That's one of the saddest parts of the story, that none of my siblings can really understand how great of a lady she was. They see pictures of my mom and my aunt growing up, and we tell them who they're looking at, but there's no way for them to understand how it felt to have an aunt that lived just fifteen minutes away, and who we saw almost every day. There are memories that I have that can't possibly mean anything to my siblings, because they never had the opportunity to know the wonderful woman who was taken from us before they were born or came to live with us. But we'll continue to talk about her, and share memories and pictures, and maybe we'll be able to help my siblings understand just a little bit of who my aunt was. Even I like hearing stories of what my aunt was like, or things that we did together, because four years isn't enough time to truly get to know a person, especially when you're in diapers for almost half of the time you know them.
Please don't forget that I'm trying to get 100 people to join me in a Thunderclap. All you need to do is click here to go to the website and then log in with Facebook, Twitter, and/or Tumblr. If (and only if) I can get at least 100 people to support my campaign, then on May 29th at 6pm, everyone who has signed up will automatically have a message posted by the Thunderclap to share my blog on their chosen social media outlet. I'd really appreciate it if you would consider supporting my campaign. If you've liked reading any of my posts, then all you need to do is sign in on the site... there's a pre-set message so you don't even need to do anything if you don't want to write your own message. Thank you so much!!
I’d greatly appreciate it if you would share this blog with friends and family through your favorite social media sites. If you’re sharing on Twitter, don’t forget to tag me (@TayTayK02) and use the hashtag #TaylorTalks.
Thanks!
Taylor