The Q life Grief Journey

When you lose a child, your world changes forever. But when you’ve had the gift of walking beside that child through the hardest days of their life, something else changes, your heart.

Quinten’s battle with cancer was cruel and unrelenting, yet he met every moment with courage, humor, and grace. I watched my son fight with quiet strength, never letting bitterness take root. Even when the pain was deep, he still found ways to love, to comfort others, to smile, to say thank you. And through it all, he kept teaching me what it truly means to live with heart.

He made me see the world differently. Little things that once seemed important began to fade, and what remained was love,  pure, patient, unconditional love. I learned that time spent together, even in silence, is a sacred gift. That kindness matters more than words. That presence can be its own form of healing.

Quinten showed me how to be brave, not just for him, but for myself. He taught me that strength isn’t about holding everything together, it’s about showing up with love even when everything feels like it’s falling apart.

Through his illness, I learned to slow down, to notice, to listen. I became softer, more compassionate, more aware of how fragile and precious life is. And when the day came that I had to let him go, I realized that even in his leaving, he was still shaping me, still helping me become the person I was meant to be.

He made me a better mother. A better wife. A better friend. A better human being.

Because of Quinten, I know that love doesn’t end. It transforms. It becomes part of who we are, the way we speak, the way we love, the way we choose to see light even in the darkest places.

So yes, cancer changed our lives. But Quinten changed me.

His courage, his laughter, his kindness, those are the lessons he left behind. And every day, I try to live in a way that honors them.

That honors him.

If love can teach us anything, it’s that even in loss, we can still become more.