She Showed Us How to Live
by Richard D. Gelina
"Do what you can for me, but please don't hurt my baby," Adrienne Palmer told the doctor. No one really remembers the exact words or most of the other events on that day, but they remember Adrienne Palmer.
Twenty-eight-year-old Adrienne was four months pregnant with her first child when she was diagnosed with acute leukemia. Now she would need to prepare for her own death, even as she prepared for a new life in the family. In a world filled with tragedies, this one might have gone unnoticed. But let the eye settle on this sad situation and bright pin points of courage and faith begin to shine in the gloom, like stars in a winter sky.
Medical treatments for cancer can be deadly to a child in the womb, so the doctors advised Adrienne to abort her baby. Appalled at the suggestion, she told the doctors she would not even consider cutting short the life of her child in an attempt to extend her own. Following Adrienne's desires, the doctors displayed great care with medications and surgeries so they would not endanger the baby.
On
July 8, 1997, Cora was born to Adrienne and her husband Grant. Battling
through severe pain during the ensuing months, Adrienne determined she
would live as long as possible so Cora would have memories of her. Her
determined struggle revealed a strength of character and depth of faith
that inspired those around her.
Grant made sure that each holiday was special for Adrienne and Cora.
Thanksgiving came quickly, but their prayers of thanks soon turned to
prayers of petition as Adrienne went to the hospital to receive a bone 
marrow
transplant. It seemed as though she had just returned from the hospital
when Christmas arrived. Adrienne's health appeared to be improving, and
she began to hope she would reach Mother's Day, and maybe even Cora's
first birthday. By Easter Adrienne was again making frequent emergency
visits to the hospital. Although her energy visibly diminished,
Adrienne's love for God and her family appeared to have no end. Cora
could not have known how special this Mother's Day was for her parents—it
was to be Adrienne's first and last Mother's Day. She entered
Christopher Hospice in Austin, Texas, a few weeks later.
Although Adrienne was no longer able to spend time at home with her
family, relatives alternated their visits to the Hospice so she would
never 
be
alone. So Cora could spend as much time as possible with her mother
during these final days, they brought toys and supplies.
On June 1, 1998, just a month before Cora's first birthday, God took Adrienne home to be with Him. More than 300 people came to the funeral. Eyes glistened with tears while the chaplain delivered the eulogy. The hearts of the people gathered were saddened because of their loss, but they had not come to mourn Adrienne's death or their loss—they had come to remember her life of faith and integrity.
"Our lives are shaped as much by those who leave us as by those who stay," the chaplain said, "and Adrienne Palmer's presence and now physical absence will continue to influence and mold all of us. ... In her journey of dying, she showed us how to live.