Kindness. And grace.

The first year CrossFit went with the whole Open/Regionals/Games format, we were pretty excited about the fancy digs we got to compete at in Vancouver.  We had an official stadium, warm up area and athlete village.  And in that athlete village, there was a guy who brought in one of those olde-tyme-y strongman games where you took a hammer and hit a plate and, if you hit it hard enough, you'd ring a bell.  Surprising loud noises and dystonia don't mix so well. 

Chantelle, upon seeing the impact the ringing of the bell was having on me, went and asked the guy to abandon his marketing strategy.  At first, he balked at her request but after their conversation, he put the thing away for the rest of the day and the next day it wasn't at his booth, anymore.  I didn't know she was going to do this.  She just took one look at me and saw that she might be able to help.  So she did and it made my experience there immeasurably better.

 And I think that says a lot about who she was as a person.

There are a lot of nice people in this world - genuinely nice.  Throughout her battle with cancer, her friends and family rallied about her with "Shine on".  I'm not sure where it came from but I think it describes her perfectly.  Chantelle was something more than genuinely nice. Whenever I have spent time with Chantelle, I was always left being reminded of just how kind she was.  And gracious.  She was gorgeous through and through and I think the outpouring of love and prayers today just goes to show how pretty much anyone who had the chance to know her is better for it.

All my love to Blair and the kids and her extended family.  And my love to Ang and the rest of her girls who have lost a best friend.