Wicked Awesome
Wednesday, November 20, 2013 at 8:46AM It was outside a Starbucks in Burbank when I finally met Kerri Sparling. I had found her blog via a podcast about diabetes. She was being interviewed and it made me want to hop online and read her blog. That was back in 2005.
Kerri is someone most people in the DOC are aware of but I would like to tell you some things that I feel make her very post worthy.
For some it is difficult to take a complement. I know when people say nice things to me I am just finally learning to say thank you and move on. Before I would deny their opinion by saying how not worthy I am which is really rude on my part actually.
Kerri does something entirely different. When I have been at conferences or meetings and someone says something like, 'Kerri you wrote a post about complications that was really great,' she will not only show appreciation but will reflect that compliment back to the DOC. A response like, 'And any blogger in this room or any person with diabetes could have written that post.' I could hear her also saying something about how complications are something all of us think about, are scared of, and need to discuss.
She doesn't bask in the spotlight like so many people would be tempted to but rather when the spotlight comes around she walks backstage, grabs a hold of it, and shines it all over the community. That is pretty amazing.
Her blog, Six Until Me, is a great place to start my DOC online day. It is one of the first things I tell people with diabetes to check out online. And especially if they are type 1 women and are thinking about pregnancy. Kerri was very open about her entire journey through pregancy which I know has and will continue to help other type 1's who want to be parents one day.
Kerri makes everyone who reads her blog feel like a family member. We have seen the sweet things her husband did before he was her husband and was courting her. Wedding pictures and stories. New career changes. Ups and downs. Highs and lows. All the way to the birth of their little Birdy. We are welcomed into her life through her words with a warmth and honesty that allows us to feel her emotions while tapping into our own.
She is wicked awesome.
Share your Kerri love below. I know I could go on for days but I don't want to get all mushy. ;)
Reader Comments (5)
G - I agree with all of the above!
Sometimes Kerri's posts make me laugh, sometimes they make me cry, but they always inspire and teach.
Yep, she's what we in Jersey call "good people."
Kerri is great, no doubt about it. She's all of the things you've described here. And she talks faster than just about anyone I know. I don't know why that's important, other than the fact that I'd like to be able to talk that fast and have her sharp wit too.
I cried - this post made my whole day so much lovelier. Thanks, SuperG.
I was looking for that photo of us from the first time we met, with our "we're WRITERS" faces. Can't find it, but I will find it and then I will make a poster celebrating your awesome eyebrow arch.
Thank you for such nice words. I hate diabetes, but I love, love that it's made you, and your family, a part of my family. Silver linings. xo
My favorite memory with Kerri was the time that people thought she was my mother! ;)
But seriously, I appreciate how fiercely she defends her friends and is willing to do just about anything for us.
Kerri is amazing and I definitely owe my involvement in the DOC to her.