What does it mean to love like Bella Grace?
In this blog Rachel Corvi shares about her daughter Bella Grace, whose life inspires Project eleven 44.
“Writing about Bella no longer being in her physical body is surreal.”
Bella and I would dream of ways we wanted to help other people connect with their peace in times of chaos because we knew chaos all too well.
We began to create retreats together where she would have the title of culinary artist and be in charge of curating a nutritious, fun, and aesthetically pleasing menu for our 3 day respite intensives. We were so happy to be moving forward and far away from cancer.
Little did we know that in the winter of 2024 cancer would rear its ugly self with an absolute vengeance. The last months of Bella’s life were spent with me scrambling to find any and every way to shrink cancer cells, and keep her living the most laid back life possible.
I wanted her to not worry at all about treatment. I told her I would handle everything and she was up for any and every kind of treatment we could find.
All she asked for is for it to be easy.
The first time Bella went through treatment at 12 years old in 2018 it was far from easy. She spent 6 weeks receiving high doses of proton radiation combined with weekly chemo over the holidays. She took a break the following month which happened to be her 13th birthday.
In February of 2019, Bella began inpatient chemo which consisted of a combination of different chemo drugs that were injected slowly into her body over a 3 day period once a month for 6 months. In August of 2019, she was considered in remission.
She was sent home with a cute ‘No more chemo song’ from the hospital with no aftercare instructions and we threw her a ‘No ‘mo chemo’ pool party. She continued physical therapy, her hair was starting to grow back, and she was back in school to begin her 8th grade year.
She continued to get stronger, went on to high school, and was active in musical theatre. She turned 15 and even started her first job! She completed physical therapy and saved up enough money to buy her first car which she named "Violet’.
In April of 2022 at the end of her sophomore year during a routine MRI, a spot was discovered in the back of Bella’s brain.
The cancer was back.
She had surgery to remove the spot and started a year long chemo regimen. She was able to continue school as well as work until she no longer had the stamina as the treatments became more intense as the months went on.
In May of 2023, Bella had completed treatment for a second time.
The song was chanted once again, and in August the port was removed. Cancer was in the past again! We had moved down to Florida, she found a fun job at an ice creamery, and was making new friends.
Bella spent her days being creative and having fun. She took very little things seriously. You could find her at any given moment creating something in her room out of clay, glitter, cardboard, paint, fabric. She really turned everything into some kind of creation.
She loved to bake and made the most beautiful cake for her 18th birthday. She would make little tiny cupcakes and cookies. She loved candy and really anything sweet, and tacos! We had a taco bar at least once a week.
She absolutely loved playing games. She was always up for a geocache, a boardgame, and she even made her own games to be played with family and friends.
She was SUPER SILLY!
Her giggle was infectious and it left an imprint on your heart. She adores her cats, and took pristine care of them. They love her just the same as they often cuddled with her and always knocked over anything she was doing to get more attention.
The love that Bella generated during her time on the physical plane was so vibrant that it extends through space and time.
She cares deeply for other people. Even people who were not so kind to her. She loved them anyway. She stayed true to her worth by allowing herself to create healthy boundaries. Watching her love life was inspiring. She was always able to find the joy in the little things and always assuring everyone that no matter what, its all going to be OK.
Bella is an example of love.
In February 2024, 3 more spots were found on her brain. We were shocked that the cancer was back yet again. Bella even said after the scan results that she thought the doctor was going to tell us ‘Just kidding!’
It was that unbelievable. How could it be?
No way the cancer was back! Bella felt amazing! It didn’t make any sense that cancer had returned.
Once again, we scrambled for treatments, and although we thought we had more time to find and give her what she needed, the cancer was too aggressive and we ran out of time.
She entered hospice on May 31st 2024 and took her last breath in her grandparents home surrounded by family and friends in Nashville, TN at 11:44am on June 9th, 2024.
To Love Like Bella Grace is to dance in the rain, sing in the storm, love anyway, take care of ourselves and each other, and live life in color!
