24. Here is the butterfly necklace that I mentioned earlier. This is the first gift I ever bought Erin, and while it’s not the nicest, most expensive piece of jewelry ever, it meant a lot to Erin and it means a lot to me. You’ll notice this necklace in a lot of pictures of Erin because she wore it all the time. I gave it to her on our first Valentine’s Day together in 2004. I bought it at Costco and I remember being extremely excited to give it to her. She loved it and nearly 12 years later, she still wore it all the time and was wearing it on the night of her death. If you were at one of her two memorials, you might’ve seen it on the table with a lot of her other things. When I got the necklace from the medical examiner, along with her ring and anything else she had on her when she died, I put it on and wore it every day after that. When I went to Africa I was told it wasn’t a good idea to wear gold jewelry, so I got a tattoo of the necklace on my chest where it rests, that way I’ve always got it on. I still wear it every day, now that I’m back; I can’t really explain why, I just like having it close to me because it makes me feel like Erin is close to me.
What a beautiful way to honor Erin on her birthday. Thank you for continuing to keep her spirit alive and always sharing your love for her. Your words are genuine and thoughtful, something she always appreciated. The coffee mugs were a Christmas gift from me, with the thought you guys would each have one. She could not wait to use them, Lol. The pure vulgarity alone was enough to make that mug her favorite! Love you Aaron, I think of you, and her every day. -Jen
Thank you, Jen! I thought they were a gift and I’m happy to know they were from you. I’m keeping her vulgarity alive and still using that mug these days. I love and think about you, too, and I know that she lives on in your heart, so thank you for keeping her spirit alive, as well.