Evelyn Faith Summers, a beautiful being entered this world. I have not yet to enter my mother’s womb. Then seven years and almost two months later, my own sunrise occurred on June 14, 1969. It was not until about 1993 our paths would cross.
Look at this hottie!
Ev, remember your hooptie you called Betsy? LOL “She” is what brought us together. I am so thankful for that hooptie! Betsy was on one of her down modes, and I, being the outgoing person I am, offered you a ride home from work. Some time down the road, you told me you had no clue what I was up to that day. You hoped I was not looking for a friend in you because you weren’t looking for a friend at the moment. I on the other hand, was not up to anything except being the outgoing person I am.
Ev in the locker room where we worked together and met each other. We worked in a clean room hence the hair covering.
Something happened over that time as we traveled to and from work together. We grew and blossomed into something beautiful. It turned out to be a 25 years plus of a wonderful friendship! I could trust you with my life!! That is soooo hard to come by these days: to find someone you know you can trust with anything and everything.
You were such a good listener. We helped each other through so many hard times; we had loads of laughs along the way. Remember the one day before work when we decided to meet up at a particular store in town? Parking downtown was already scarce on a good day; being that it just snowed, piles of that glorious white stuff were all around making parking on the street impossible, so we decided to both park in the lot at the bus terminal.
We quickly went into the store to look around, then we headed back to our cars to leave for work. As you pulled off, I followed behind you. I noticed your license plate was missing. I honked my horn to get your attention. You rolled down your window and stuck out your head to see what I wanted. I yelled out to you, “Ev, your license plate is not on your car.” You said, “What??!!!?” You got out to look, then we went to the back of my car to check my plate and lo and behold mine was missing too.
We knew the man working at the bus station had to have taken our plates since technically we should not have parked there anyway. We went inside to confront him. Although he would not admit it, his nasty attitude toward us said it all, not to mention the irony of both our plates being MIA.
Remember how we had to call in to work telling them we were going to be late so we could go to City Hall to get the situation taken care of. LOL It was a little frustrating, but we laughed our heads off at the same time. We got to work and told all of our co-workers what happened. It was the funniest thing. We had everyone in stitches with the story. What an eventful day!
Sometimes you would call me just to find out how I made a particular dish or to get a recipe from me. You would say, “Tray, I don’t have time to talk, I just want to know how you make… or can you give me the recipe for…” You knew if you did not tell me prior that there would be no time for talking, we would be on the phone for at least an hour. Normally, once we got on the phone we would spend hours venting to one another, crying, joking and laughing.
A figurine Ev gifted me as her Matron of Honor on her wedding day. She told me it reminded her of the two of us and how we would sit and talk.
Remember on our lunch break at work we would lock ourselves in the big bathroom and do our Bible study?
We joined the church. Ev, me; my son, Andre and daughter, Aaliyah.
How about when we got our vacation days from work? We would get ours around the same time. I was known for using my vacation days up quickly! I would always come up with a spontaneous adventure and get you to come along. Remember how you would say to me, “Tray, you are not going to make me use up all my days this year!” And we would laugh. I knew there was some seriousness when you said it, but I also knew I could always count on you to eat up at least few days for me.
I would call you up and say, “Ev, let’s take a vacation day and go to South Street in Philadelphia with the kids.” You would breakdown and say, “Okay, Tray.” And off we would go and have a great time! I even got you to go out clubbing with me several times. We had sooo much fun!
You and I have exchanged so many gifts over the years for our birthdays and other occasions. Going to family events together; our annual Christmas party at Viv’s apartment where we would eat, talk, laugh, and exchange presents with Dot, Viv, Nancy and Kathy.
At Viv’s apartment for one of our many Christmas get-togethers. Top row L to R: Ev’s sister, Dot; Viv, Nancy. Bottom row L to R: Ev, me and Kathy.
How about the places we traveled to go to church and conferences?! We were all over: New York; Philadelphia, PA; Pottstown, PA; Baltimore, MD; Washington, D.C.
One of our weekend girl trips to Washington, D.C. Our main reason was to attend Lynette’s church, but we made sure we had fun around the city. L to R: Michelle, Ev, Joyce and Lynette.More pictures of Ev on our D.C. trip. We were at a restaurant. Ev was looking at the menu so I caught her off-guard by calling her name and then I snapped the picture.
You stood for my daughter when I got her dedicated at church. I was your Matron of Honor at your wedding.
Ev and Nick on their wedding day: March 25, 2006.Mr. and Mrs. Nicholas Nazario, Jr.
Ev and my daughter, Aaliyah, who was a big flower girl. LolThis is me on the wedding day. The visibility is not good, but it is one of the memories I cherish. I had on a halter top dress, hence the coat.
We were inseparable, then life changed. We did not get to hangout as much as we once did, but we still made sure to meet up occasionally, invite each other to functions and talk on the phone.
It is not a clear picture, but that is okay. Ev at my granddaughter’s first birthday party.
Three years ago before I relocated to North Carolina we met up for dinner. That was the last time I saw you. Since I moved, we’ve sent texts and talked, but I did not get to spend any time with you in the last three years.
Ev and I texting several months ago.
I am sad for the times I went back home to visit my adult children and I did not take the time to plan something with you; even if it would have been for 30 minutes. Between the long drive and trying to spend as much time with my children, there never seemed to be enough time for much else. The weekend always flew by so quickly. It never meant that I did not value our friendship or cherish our memories over two and a half decades. I now pray everyday that you had enough of security in our friendship to know how I felt regardless of my lack of visitations. I think you did, just by our periodical talks and texts. When we would finally catch up, it was as if several months of gap, sometimes more, never existed.
Sunset: June 24, 2019
I stopped at a grocery store close to my home. I picked up a few items. My mom was sending me messages on the messenger app that I read while I was shopping. As I was leaving the store walking to my car, I received a messenger notification. I figured it was my mom again continuing our topic of conversation. I waited until I got to my car and sat down to open the message. Never in a million years did I think I would read what I was about to read next.
All I remembered were certain words that stuck out to me: State troopers, Evelyn Nazario, deceased, car crash. I felt my eyes widen in disbelief. Everything was blurred then turned black. I started screaming NOOOOOO, NOOOOO as I cried sitting in my car. It felt as if I was having a nightmare. The first person I called was your son, David. Him and I cried together. I just remember him trying to calm me down. As he was crying, he tried to pull it together and said to me, “It’s okay, Tracy.” When he and I both knew it wasn’t and it still is not.
It is over a month now and I am still in shock!! I think about you EVERY SINGLE day!! It is so hard to believe, I will never be able to call you, text you or see you ever again. This tragic incident took all that away from me and everyone else who loved you dearly.
An old family photo. Ev and Nick with their three son’s: Nick III at the top, Gilbert at the bottom left, and David far right.
I am sure you know I flew back home and attended all your services. Wow, is all I can say! You had a service at church like none I have ever seen before. It was phenomenal, just like you! The church was packed like a Sunday morning. I would say there had to be about four hundred people in attendance, not including those that viewed you and did not stay for the service. Nick really let loose at the end. He felt led to say something, ended up preaching, and everyone was blown away! So many made comments about it afterwards.
The viewing at the funeral home the next day was packed as well. Your procession to the burial looked like it stretched several blocks. There had to be about 60 cars heading to the cemetery. I am not sure why I am telling you this because I know you were looking down, dancing around in amazement how your life was celebrated. It was an awesome celebration!
It took me awhile to get this blog posted. Getting this post out has been a challenge as I had to look through pictures and type my memories and experience. I still cannot believe you are gone. It is so hard to fathom. It is not like you are the first person I lost that was close to me. My grandparents were my everything and I lost them years ago. I think the difference here is with them there were events leading to the thought that death may be near. It was still extremely hard though. Death is never easy. With you, this tragedy hit me hard from behind. Who would have seen this coming!!!???? All I know is, I love you dearly and I miss you terribly. I love you!
Below are some recent text messages I chose to share. They are precious to me.
Our last Christmas text.
A text I sent for Ev’s birthday. I do not know how I was a day early. LOLTexting each other this past Mother’s Day.
A text just because.
She was so excited about school. That is where she was heading when the accident happened.
Her birthday text to me 10 days before she got killed.
Theron Cook was always in to art. When he was in elementary school he would draw Ninja Turtles, the Wu-Tang Clan symbol, Mortal Kombat, bubble letters, and cartoon characters. He would doodle as a hobby with his friends. At this point, it was nothing serious. His real passion early on was basketball, and his dream was to go as far as he could.
Some of Theron’s early work in 4th-5th grade. The one to the right is a self-portrait.
He played for the Boys & Girls Club and his middle school. There was one problem: Theron had an issue with his foot swelling for no apparent reason. Doctors were uncertain as to why this was happening. They mentioned the possibility of arthritis, but were unsure. “There were times I may have turned my ankle a little during basketball and continued to play,” says Theron. “But this was different from that.”
On his painful, swollen foot, Theron would still play, then walk a good distance home. Trying to be as normal as possible, his friends and teammates knew nothing about his health struggles. They did not know once Theron went home, his parents would give him a foot massage and soak his foot.
In high school, he walked slow and with a limp due to the pain. A soft cast was put on his bad foot. The doctors were going back and forth with a diagnosis. They were still unsure as to what was going on. “This was a very frustrating time,” Theron said. “I felt there was no need to keep going to the doctor when they could never pinpoint what was going on.”
He could no longer continue basketball with this ongoing health issue, which created a lot of disappointment. Around that time, a friend of Theron’s told him about an art class he was taking. He told him it was cool and had a lot of nice looking girls in class. Theron decided to give it a try. Pretty girls may have been what got him interested in the class, but Theron ended up throughly enjoying it.
Some pieces Theron created as he was growing more artistically.
The transition from basketball to art was not easy, however, he found art had become a therapeutic outlet; one that allowed him to express himself, not to mention he was good at it. He finally found what was missing since he no longer was able to play sports. Basketball provided the self-discipline he needed to push himself to the limit. Art allowed him to articulate his vision through drawing, then eventually painting.
Theron was loving art. “I would come home after school and continue to create,” Theron said. “I loved working on art at home.” His father took notice of this by the way his assignments were taken on with such enthusiasm and asked Theron to create a sign for his peanut business. This was one of Theron’s more serious pieces since it was going to be used for business purposes.
Expanding on his artistic knowledge, Theron decided to take a basic computer art class in school to see what it was all about. He found he did not like it. “Once I was introduced to fine arts and creating with my hands, I could not understand why I would need to create on a computer,” Theron said. “Not when I could control the outcome of a project through the use of colored pencils.” He then joined the art club at school and painted two murals, and won first place in a painting contest. He found painting was a way for him to de-stress.
A painting Theron created to de-stress before taking his driver’s license test, which he passed.
Having good grades allowed him to be able to follow a career path. So he had art classes for almost half of his school hours. The first day of art class in 11th grade, Theron’s teacher had everyone close their eyes and scribble on a piece of paper. When the class opened their eyes they had to make something out of the scribble. This was one of the first times Theron was exposed to his spiritual side being used in art. “I still use this technique to this day because it brings out my creativity,” says Theron. Since his father was a preacher, Theron already had a deep spiritual connection, now being introduced to this new method, his artwork became spiritually driven.
In his senior year of high school, his father purchased a paint set for him. “One of my very first paintings I took downstairs to my dad,” said Theron. “He was amazed and asked me if it was 3D.” His dad’s excitement surprised him. He did not realize what he ended up creating. This electrified Theron to go all out. He became a full blown painter, painting all throughout his bedroom; even the ceiling.
This is Theron’s bedroom walls. He did not paint them as of yet. These were his drawings.
The other painting Theron’s father questioned if it were 3D.One of the paintings his father questioned about being 3D.
Now that graduating high school was fast approaching, one of his art teachers suggested he go to a particular art school in Philadelphia, PA. Theron being an introvert, his teacher felt this particular art school would cater more to someone like Theron who did not like to ask for help. He would get the attention he needed and not just be a number.
Paintings from high school.Theron and one of his high school art teachers.
When Theron decided to further his art education at the suggested four year college, he searched for his own funding before telling his parents. He received a scholarship and three grants and took care of all the paperwork. All his parents had to do was provide their signatures.
At first he decided to major in illustration. In his junior year, he switched from illustration to advertising and design. He took a class in art history and fell in love with it. Once again, Theron was exposed to the spiritual side of art as the teacher explained how humanity used God as a reflection through architecture, paintings, and sculptures.
The teacher fascinated him. She owned an art gallery in Philadelphia, PA which exposed him to art at the professional level. He started learning how to present himself as well as how to market and advertise. “Prior to learning the business side, art was a spiritual thing,” said Theron. “It still is, but I started to learn the other side of it.”
In his last year of college, Theron needed an internship in order to fulfill his graduation requirement. He applied to three magazine companies: Complex, Vibe, and XXL. After writing over 100 emails, calling almost every other day, and visiting unannounced, his persistence finally paid off! He landed an internship with Vibe magazine.
This became a busy time for Theron. He would wake at 5 a.m., take a bus to school which was an hour long commute, then two nights a week take another bus commuting two hours to New York, then once he got to New York he had a 45 minute train ride, then a city bus before he would arrive at Vibe magazine. He did this for six months while working at a bus terminal (which helped financially since he got to ride the bus for free) and a general merchandise store.
Interning at Vibe was very valuable. Theron obtained so much knowledge, he decided to create his own magazine. Prior to college he was more of a fine artist learning how to create art. In college, he was learning how to make art into a career from a business perspective. This is when things changed.
He started his journey to become an entrepreneur. With two childhood friends, they created TAP magazine, an acronym standing for the first letter of each of their first names. Eventually, the magazine’s name stood the same, but the meaning changed to, “The American People” standing for American people associated with music entertainment. They had structure, however, the magazine fell short causing one friend to give up and go his own way.
In 2006-2007, Theron and his other friend started Mute magazine (Music Under The Edge) discussing music, art, fashion and technology. Theron used Mute for his senior showcasing presentation. He created all the website design, mock up covers, recruited writers from school, and a photographer he met a Vibe.
At that time, Theron put painting on the back burner to do more computer graphics for the magazine. He had his magazine’s first photoshoot and issue release at his school. “The response was crazy,” Theron said. “We got intimidated by the major response and the need for funding as well as other obligations, and one partner fizzled out.”
Theron put a halt on the magazine. He went on to partner with another friend who asked him to design a clothing line. Theron took advantage of the opportunity to help fund Mute magazine so he could eventually start it back up. He learned screen printing and everything else that went along with clothing design. They had inventory set up, a photoshoot, and a fashion show. His friend ended up stopping the clothing line to go into the food business.
This led Theron to start “Mute the Ha8ter” campaign to resurrect his magazine. He looked for the faces of artists, had a photoshoot in New York, he found writers like David Nazario who answered the ad for a writing position with Mute-since then, David Nazario has published his own book, “Make Love Your Religion”.
Some photos for the campaign.David Nazario, myself and Theron some years back at a Red Bull Event in Philadelphia when Mute was back in full swing.
While restarting his magazine, he showcased three of his paintings at the gallery in Philadelphia, PA owned by his art history teacher. The Discovery Channel was there so it was a big deal. This gave him experience on how to display his artwork. He was also involved with a group of African-American artists in Reading, PA who would display their artwork during Black History Month at the local museum. Later this expanded beyond the month of February, at different galleries to educate the public about African-American art and the artists behind the pieces. “We would be downtown selling our artwork,” said Theron. “My art was also presented in a local coffee shop.”
Some of the covers of Mute magazine once it was back up and running.More of the magazine covers.
Theron was open to new things to explore in order to stretch himself with experiences he could grow from. Around 2010-2011, he got a job with an advertising company learning how to design casino signs, while still doing the magazine and displaying his work here and there as he could. During this time, his health started giving him problems again, however, he did not let it knock him down.
He went to the doctor who decided to inject steroids in his feet to help with the pain. At this time, for about eight months he was working third shift for a company who manufactured car batteries in their production department, while still doing what he needed to do for his magazine, traveling to New York for photoshoots, and taking care of home maintenance. Basically, he was running himself to the ground.
In addition to his issue with his feet, Theron started to experience shortness of breath. He went to the doctor and was treated for asthma. A short time after his asthma diagnosis, an ambulance had to come get him from his home. When he arrived at the hospital they ran tests, and found he had blood clots in his lungs. “ In hindsight, I was disconnected spiritually due to working crazy and not taking care of myself,” he said. “I feel this was God’s way of telling me to reflect, surrender and witness the power of God.”
His first hospitalization was six months straight, so he had to rebuild things from scratch. The downtime allowed him to think regarding which way he was going to go with everything. In 2015, Theron had another hospitalization requiring stomach surgery.
In between hospitalizations, he got a job at Essence Magazine and lived in New York. While living in New York he got exposed to different styles as to how the art world really works. He started doing live paintings; learning different ways to promote and market his art, body painting, graphic arts, websites, apps, and photography.
Theron’s artwork on sneakers.
He received a certificate in UX Design (User Experience). Now he designs apps, websites, marketing, branding, and fine arts. He also developed a system with branding that he utilizes on his own. “Pretty much I am a business within myself, helping other businesses,” Theron sad. “I have a good system going where I can build a company from scratch all the way to market.”
One of his projects, “Butterfli3ffect” is Theron’s way of marketing his personified story. “It is a direct reflection of my transformation through the experiences I encountered moving from Pennsylvania to New York,” says Theron. It interprets how he had to change his ways and adapt from being an introvert, pushing himself to speak more so he could interact socially without compromising his character.
He had to find confidence within himself and his purpose. His rule when living in New York was to go to a couple of events a week, at minimum. This then turned into three a day. His goal was to attend any event that interested him where he could learn and meet people. He would talk about what he was doing and who he was. “I blossomed metaphorically speaking, into a butterfly,” he said.
In Pennsylvania he was more of a caterpillar. When he moved to New York, he built upon his experience, determination, motivation and inspiration which all resulted in his transformation. This experience prompted him to paint a series of 33 butterflies, each having their own concept, elaborating within the painting on the particular concept.
A book of all 33 butterflies from “Butterfli3ffect”.
Theron is laying out a blueprint for the future. He has his artwork on watches, he is making collectables, painting designs on sneakers and clothing, sculpting out and manufacturing toys. He is starting a workshop for children at the museum in Reading, PA. Children who attend the workshop will paint their own toy to take home. He is currently working on a children’s puzzle and 3-D pop-up book that will coincide with the workshop.
A wristwatch.
He is materializing on all aspects of his magazine by adding in the technology component. He has patented a couple inventions that will go live: a mini pocket size computer and a holographic 3D clock you hang on the wall in the shape of a butterfly. It will have a screen to project so you can watch him do a piece of his artwork in real time.
And it does not stop there. He designed two apps. One is a classroom app to solve the issue with the relationships between parents, teachers and student’s through art. One aspect of the app is a clipboard which each student goes in for their individual lesson. This promotes the students to interact with one another. Each student will be responsible for their lesson. The project cannot be completed without each student’s participation to complete the final piece of art. This demonstrates what can be accomplished through teamwork. “In the app, teachers can do progress reports and permission slips,” says Theron. “There is a lot of communication along with visual arts and games too.”
Theron’s motto: Don’t quit! It is everything he stands for. He will not quit! That is something he will tell anybody to motivate or inspire them. “Whatever you do, whatever you desire to be, whatever is your utmost desire, don’t quit that,” says Theron. “Take that to your grave! You can always modify your path, but DO NOT quit!”
Just one of Theron’s merchandise ideas for his motto.Over the course of seven years Theron exposed himself to a lot of religions. He was questioning things and started to write the book, 7th Note.
Theron’s son on the last page of the “Butterfli3ffect” book.
I would like to take you into my world for just a few moments. Home is one of the places your heart should feel alive and happy. It is so important to have decor that is aesthetically pleasing every time you look at it, as well as messages throughout your home to create positive vibes every time you look read them. Have things around us that keep us on high vibrations is so important. I would like to share with you some of the things that I have in my home that do this for me.
I love art! This is just one piece I decided to show you. It is special to me because the very talented Theron Cook created this painting to a poem I wrote called , “The Ceiling”.This bowl is near and dear to my heart. It is a bowl that was kept at my grandparent’s house with fruit in it on the dinning room table.
I love to keep items around with uplifting sayings.
Pictures of my children whom I love from here to infinity.
Some of the things I love in my bathroom. I love butterflies and mermaids and decorative bowls.
Nothing like a delicious warm beverage. It is the little things in life that we enjoy that keep us going.
I love creating a cozy ambiance. I have more throughout my home. These are just some things I’ve chosen to share.
Even what we drink out of can create happiness.
Plants and flowers bring such a good feeling and purify the air.
I love to burn incense.Scented candles are so cozy and are great to smell.I love looking out over my balcony and see the sun while feeling its warmth on my skin. It is the little things in life.Looking at vibrant colors and patterns brings me joy, not to mention they make any room pop!
I hope you enjoyed what I shared with you and I hope it inspires you.
Phone interview with Kitty Cavas, owner of Cavas Expressions.
Hello Kitty, it’s Tracy. How are you?
Hello Tracy, I am good. How are you doing?
I’m good. So we will do the interview we talked about. I know your son (Jasiel) was not born a well child and you were a single mother, as well as having your own health struggles with Lupus. Tell me about your son and how old he was when you found out you had Lupus?
Jasiel was supposed to be born on September 7th, but he ended up being born on June 26th. I had just met the 27th week of pregnancy. When he was born he was born 1 pound, 3 ounces. Right before he was born, I had •severe preeclampsia. I woke up with blurry vision almost to the point of being blind, my kidney and liver started to fail and swell up into my lungs, so basically we needed to get Jasiel out in time and save my life.
Looking back I feel the preeclampsia was due to the Lupus I did not know I had at the time. So when Jasiel was born they had to airlift him from the local hospital to a children’s hospital in Philadelphia. I was still recovering so I did not get to hold him. I did not get to see him until he was about three weeks old. After about three days of Jasiel being in the hospital, they had contacted me while I was recuperating telling me they needed my consent because his stomach just perforated. A hole had expanded in his stomach spilling toxic waste into his body. They needed to go into his body to flush out all the toxins then they were going to go in and close up and remove half of his lower intestines; that is a majority of where the hole was. He was one of the smallest babies they had to do that surgery on. He survived that which was impressive. Then they found out he was a “bubble kid” which means he did not have an immune system therefore he could not heal from his surgery.
His incisions got infected and Jasiel contacted sepsis fungi which is known to kill you, especially for an adult. It goes through your blood system and constrict your veins so they swell up causing your blood not to travel through your body which then your organs start to shut down. They say babies are more resilient so I feel that is the only reason he survived. know because my grandmother passed away from sepsis fungi.
We made the decision to put Jasiel in an induced coma. Jasiel was such a fighter, he even fought against the machine. He fought against everything and just keep breathing. If anyone knows about an oscillator or a nitric jet machine, those machines are high intense forms of life support, meaning, it is punching the air into your body; you can not move when you are in a situation like that, however, for a baby that does not understand that and only wants to live, he is going to breathe and fight though it to try to save his own life. So that is the reason we decided to put him into an induced coma, so the machines could work and do their job.
He was in a coma for about three months it was a very, very emotional time. I was a young mother of 21 years old, and I felt like a lot of the hospital workers did not respect me. They were thinking just because I was a young single mother, I was not really going to be there, yet there were babies in the hospital with parents that were 30 years old and up that were not really there with their children. I was there every single day with my son.
It was a very disrespectful time. The social worker came in and said I was being selfish for letting Jasiel in the coma for such a long time when things are really not progressing. She felt I was letting him suffer and go through all this pain and what were the results!? Him being a vegetable!? I got very upset and I would not accept anything but saving his life which was the best decision I made. If I would have listened to them I would have not been able to live with myself, seeing now how beautiful, talented and special my son is.
After that, I got in a really bad time in my life because I was not seeing eye-to-eye with the doctors. They were doing things behind my back. I did not know legally what my rights were and how to advocate for my son. I was a first time mother, not to mention a hospital mother. That type of experience is very different from a normal parent. There is a whole other level of stress a hospital mother has to deal with from the beginning due to the way the child is born. I never had the chance for it to be explained to me regarding what can happen with a premature baby or what to look for with insurance or help aides, so basically I was on my own.
I got very upset and became super depressed. It affected me mentally, physically; everything. So one day we were talking to the doctor and I was informed my son needed another surgery which was one of the more critical surgeries. I couldn’t accept it. I went into overload and I mentally broke down. They ended up having to call the police and I spent my first Mother’s Day in a mental institution due to the trauma I was going through and the lack of help I did not receive from the services at the hospital. I was very alone, I was living in my car, I could not stay at the Ronald McDonald house, it was a lot of trauma for someone to go through with a baby. After I got out of the mental institution, I felt like I wanted to change hospitals for my son, so we transferred him which was emotional, but positive experience; they actually saved him. Jasiel was in the hospital the whole first year of his life.
Within that year it was a lot for me to take so I could not focus on myself. I felt like I was sick but then I was thinking it was just stress induced. After Jasiel came home from the hospital I started to work more. I noticed bruises all over my legs and arms. There was nothing that was happening on the outside to cause me to become bruised. So, I called my doctor and was told to go to the hospital to get a series of tests. Even though Jasiel left the hospital in Philadelphia, he was still going through the motions which caused him to go back and forth to the hospital in our area to stabilize him. So it just so happened at that time, I had to go get my blood tests. Since I was at the hospital on the Pediatrics unit, I went down to get my blood test, then went back up to the unit to be with my son. About two hours later I got a call, they were asking me exactly where I was because it was an emergency. I told them I was in the hospital with my son. They told me they were going to send someone to get me in a wheelchair to get me and wheeled down to the emergency room because I was going to have a stroke. That was the first indication that something was wrong with me, I just did not know what it was.
They did more testing and found that my body was killing my red blood cells and platelets, therefore, I could not clot properly which was causing my bruising. The clots were increasing and getting closer to my heart and brain. They immediately took me to surgery and put catheters in my chest. I automatically started chemotherapy and dialysis to try to reverse my body from killing itself. At first they thought I had leukemia or some other kind of blood diseases. They were treating me to stabilize me, but at this point, they did not know what I had. I ended up having a second stroke and my mom was not going to play around anymore with this. She felt they were not helping me; I was getting worse. She felt if I stood at that hospital I was going to die. We did our research and transferred me to a hospital in Philadelphia. That is when I received the information and finally knew what was going on. I was told I had Lupus as well as *Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (TTP). Now that they knew what I had, they could treat me better.
It has not gotten better because I have relapsed five times in the last four years, but at least I know my symptoms and what to expect as well as the treatments I need to take to keep myself alive. Since then, my son has progressed. He ate from a feeding tube until he was about four and a half years old, we went to a rehab center for children which started him on a rehab feeding program. He stood there for about three and a half months. He lived in a dorm setting and I stood with him every other day. It was about an hour drive for me but I went as much as possible. After that, he started to eat solid foods and been eating solid foods ever since. He is fine mentally. He does wear glasses and is petite, but he eats, he is doing better; he is thriving. He is in soccer, he is going to second grade, he is no longer on oxygen or eating from tubes. The only thing is, he is severely allergic to dairy, to the point of Anaphylactic Shock so we keep an EpiPen.
As for me I just keep up with my blood tests and medications going.Lupus can be dormant. It can be in your mother and father’s DNA but does not mean they have it. In my case, both parents have it in their DNA but they do not have it; it crossed over to me. Since both parents have it, for me, the Lupus is stronger.
So do you feel all the stress caused the Lupus to come out?
Yes
Through all of this, when did you get involved with skincare?
About 3-4 years ago, after I found out I had Lupus, I relapsed about two more times within that year. I feel like I relapsed because it was so brand new. We really did not know what to expect to keep everything at bay. Everyone is different. Once we customized the strategy for my disease, we then got it under control. Once that happened, I was like I am not going to be able to keep a 9-5 job and there is nothing I can really do, so I thought I would go back to school and take it from there. I did not think I was going to get in estestetics. I took a tour at a school. I originally went to check out their makeup program. I use to model and I worked for a well-known cosmetic brand, therefore, I was comfortable with cosmetics. I felt it was second nature to me. They explained to me that in the state of Pennsylvania even if I received the makeup certificate I would not be able to touch someone’s skin and charge them without having my cosmetology license or being an esthetician. I figured I will just do the full esthetics program. At the time, I had a portacath implant hanging out of my neck. I still had to get dialysis. When I was in the hospital I would get dialysis everyday, seven times a week, then as I got better, it decreased to four times a week which was still a hassle with going to school from 9am-4pm in another city an hour away. Dialysis is very tiresome and that is something that I really had to push myself with; doing dialysis from 5am-8am then having an hour drive to school and spending all day in school which was a lot on my body.
Yes, most definitely! With all that stress you completed the program then you started doing skin care, but mostly you started out doing eyebrows for the most part, correct?
When I first got in to skincare, eyebrows was not my main focus. It became my thing when my teacher said she only wanted me to wax her eyebrows, then all the other girls said the same thing. Originally it was not me thinking eyebrows was my main focus until later on.
I watched the opening video on Facebook which was beautiful by the way.
Thank you
I heard you say you started doing eyebrows at home having two appointments week which progressed to two a day, then 30 a day.
Yes. Sometimes I look at my schedule in my phone and it is so full I want to through my phone (laughs)
It did all this over the course of five years, which means your son was two years old at the time and you were one year in to your diagnosis with Lupus and TTP. Meanwhile, your son was still pretty sick as well as yourself as you were doing all this, correct?
Yes, that is correct.
So through all of this with your son being sick and your health your health, were you doing only eyebrows or all skincare?
Well I am a licensed esthetician so I do all skincare. I was specializing in microdermabrasion and skin tightening when it came to European facials. I was also doing makeup and eyebrows. Little by little when I first started my little business, I was getting a mixture of everything. I was not an “eyebrow girl”. Then more people started telling others how good I do eyebrows. Then my appointments started to no longer be just for skincare and makeup, strictly eyebrows all day. So then I was like, oh okay, I am doing something and I just stuck with it.
You stuck with school and finished, and look what it has flourished into and thank God you did stick with it! What fueled you at the time to keep going through all the sickness and struggles?
My son! The fact that, it is different when you go through a stroke and you can’t physically move. It gets very frustrating being young seeing everyone living their life and you are in a bed and no one is visiting you. You go to the cancer center and see women in their most troublesome time and you look at things differently. All that is really what motivated me to make a bad situation and turn it into a positive one. Even as I grow with my business, my mindset changes and my idea of how I want to make people happy has changed as well. That is the whole reason why I got in to permanent tattooing. When I first started my business out, it was strictly tweezing, I was not even sugar waxing at that time. I was crawling before I walked and I walked before I ran, so my dream has progressively got bigger as my business has got better.
Do you believe it was due to you building confidence in those areas?
Yes, definitely! The more people keep saying you’re the best, you’re really good, you are going to start feeling that way and you are going to want to venture out and be even better. I then got really involved in education leading me to want to be the best esthetician and eyebrow reconstruction person I knew I could be. I went on to get my certificate in microblading and ombre shading. I did not even practice on anyone until about after a year. I practiced on bananas, oranges, and pigskin; it was strictly practice, I did not want to hurt anyone or mess up their face. I did not want anyone, even family as guinea pigs. That whole year I practiced I was afraid, then one day I was like, I need to make this money! Waxing eyebrows was doing good for me, but I felt the only way I was going to progress and save a lump sum of money was to have a more expensive service; so I had to get better at my craft. I did it and did not give up.
Tattooing is not easy. You can’t make everybody happy, your results vary when it comes to skin, and there are a lot of factors when it comes to permanent tattooing. It was something I had to stick through. My husband became my advocate. There were times I said, “I no longer want to do this; I don’t want anyone complaining anymore.” he told me I have to stick with this because I have something going here, I just need to get better, and I did. Now I don’t receive anything but good feedback, but I had to get through that in order to be where I am at now. If I would have given up I would not be where I am today.
People get intimidated. I have to listen to Jazz music when I do my tattoos because I need to have a very relaxed environment. Your dealing with somebody’s face and it is permanent. You can get sued at any time so there can be a lot of anxiety because there is a lot that is riding on you and at the end of the day they trust YOU, so I try to do my best job as possible by being as stress-free as I can.
It is so good you stuck with it! Tell me a little about Cavas Expressions?
We have our own off-street parking. We provide all aesthetics which include: European facials; specialty facials such as: oxygen facials, chemical peels, microdermabrasion, skin tightening, full body waxing, makeup and eyebrow reconstruction. My husband just finished his massage therapy license so he is a licensed massage therapist.
Visit Cavas Expressions at 4900 Kutztown Road, Temple, PA 19560
*Severe preeclampsia causes headaches, vision problems even to tolerate bright light, fatigue, rapid weight gain caused by increased body fluid, nausea and vomiting, reduced urination, pain in the abdomen, change in reflexes, shortness of breath, and tendency to bruise easily.
*TTP- Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) is a rare blood disorder. In TTP, blood clots form in small blood vessels throughout the body. The clots can limit or block the flow of oxygen-rich blood to the body’s organs, such as the brain, kidneys, and heart. As a result, serious health problems can develop. The increased clotting that occurs in TTP also uses up platelets (PLATE-lets) in the blood. Platelets are blood cell fragments that help form blood clots. These cell fragments stick together to seal small cuts and breaks on blood vessel walls and stop bleeding. With fewer platelets available in the blood, bleeding problems can occur. People who have TTP may bleed inside their bodies, underneath the skin, or from the surface of the skin. When cut or injured, they also may bleed longer than normal. “Thrombotic” (throm-BOT-ik) refers to the blood clots that form. “Thrombocytopenic” (throm-bo-cy-toe-PEE-nick) means the blood has a lower than normal number of platelets. “Purpura” (PURR-purr-ah) refers to purple bruises caused by bleeding under the skin. Bleeding under the skin also can cause tiny red or purple dots on the skin. These pinpoint-sized dots are called petechiae (peh-TEE-kee-ay). Petechiae may look like a rash.
