Michelle

When I started to work at Caseys in 1999, A co-worker and I hit it off, we were instant friends.
Michelle. She was about 5'2, and her birthday was 8 days before mine. She lived with me for a short while, then got pregnant and moved out to be with the father. Great friend. Never looked down on you for anything.
I was pregnant with Haley when she was killed, In January of 2006. Due to major head injuries from a car accident. That's how Haley is named. She has Michelle's middle name.
When Shawn and I married in June of that year. I sent an invite out to her husband. He didn't come, due to rain. Anyways, the next day, Shawn and I saw her husband at Target, with a girl that looked, dressed and walked just like Michelle. She took off one way, and he stopped to talk to us.
Later the night I dreamt that I was driving to her house, to tell her that I saw her husband with another woman. In my dream, she was sitting on the porch waiting for me. The first thing she said to me was, "I know, Jill, and its OK!" She took me in the house, and it was a long, white, straight hallway of stairs going up. We went up to the first landing, and there I saw her husband asleep on the couch with their boys. She kept saying she had to go, and walking up to the next landing of steps. Where she would stop, to tell me that "Everything was OK, I'm fine now!"
We went up the final set up to the last landing, there was a door. She turned to me and said, "I miss you, Jill. But everything's fine now, Im ok!" She asked me if I wanted to go with her, I said no, she turned to open the door, and it was bright in there, she turned and smiled one more time, and closed the door behind her.
When I woke, I knew I just walked a good friend to Heaven. And I felt comforted. Relieved that she let me know she was doing fine.
After we lost Haley, I would still have dreams of Michelle. Dreams that she wanted to drive down gravel roads, really fast. I would always worry about her head, and tell her no.
Id dream that she would be off in the distance, holding a baby. My baby.
So my next tattoo, will be a Angel holding a baby Angel.
It wasn't fair that a good friend of mine, and then my daughter were both taken within 2 months of each other. I felt utterly lost. Confused.
R.I.P. Michelle, November 1, 1978---January 25, 2006, I miss you so much!
Please hold my daughter tight for me till I get there to hold her again!
Tell her that mommy loves her so much!