A Friend

I met Sara through a friend a few years ago and kept up with her via her blog. She was an incredibly strong person who was homebound and living with a chronic illness. She was very artistic and had started her own business called Gitzen Doodles. Sara was a faithful person and she tried to share her faith and her love through her art and her blog. I commissioned a small canvas from her before Maxwell was born and she did an amazing job:

Every time I look at this I imagine how difficult it was for her to make. She walked with a walker and couldn't sit for long periods of time. Her joints were very painful and everything she did was a struggle. Yet each letter on this canvas is perfect.

Sara passed away on Saturday. The internet is filled with blog posts, articles and comments from people who never met her but were touched by her life and mourn her death.

Sara Anne Frankl was born May 13, 1973 (Mother's Day) to Mike and Jane (Grandgenett) Frankl of Algona, IA. Sara was baptized at St. Cecelia parish and attended St. Cecelia grade school. Sara graduated from Bishop Garrigan high school in 1991, and received her English Degree from the University of Northern Iowa in 1996.


Sara used her degree in English working for a magazine in Cedar Falls, but her disability made it difficult for her to work and eventually Sara became homebound. Over time, Sara viewed her disability as a blessing. It allowed her to go from making a living focusing on professional goals, to making a life focusing on personal goals: I will not be ashamed to stand before God; I will fulfill God's plan by living the best life I can with what I am given; I will be aware and present in every moment; I will love what I have and not yearn for what I lack; I will spread the Joy, not the fear; I will be intentional in all things. Sara taught us that there isn't a situation in life that isn't covered by these goals. This is how her friends knew her, and it's how she wants us all to remember her.


One of Sara's favorite quotes is: "Have courage for the great sorrows of life, and patience for the small ones. And when you have finished your daily task, go to sleep in peace. God is awake." ~Victor Hugo


Sara lived her life with a strong belief that God can take care of more than one thing at a time; and God thinks we are worth it. There were great sorrows in Sara's life... and He granted her the courage to face them. Sara was able to hold on to her courage and patience by believing with every fiber of her being that God is awake. Sara's life was about "Choosing Joy." Today, Sara's joy is with her earthly and her heavenly father... singing and dancing. (To learn more about Sara and her faithfulness, go to www.gitzengirl.blogspot.com.)