Ella "Bear" Mardon

Make a person made of love. Not the kind that performs. The kind that just lands on you.

Bear.

That's what I call her. Not because she's fierce. Though she is. It's the emotional hug she squeezes you lovingly with. The love that pours out of her. And that smile. It melts me.

She reads rooms at a level that's almost not fair. The real issue. The one underneath the one everyone's arguing about. She's clocked it before you've finished your first sentence. She won't say it. She'll just hold it quietly until you catch up.

HSC year. Handling it the way she handles everything. More grace than the situation requires.

She's my muse. She's wiser than me. I don't say that lightly. I've met a lot of people.

Just more of you please. Of everything. Like having Sam Harris in the house. Except warmer. And better looking.

She gives the kind of love that asks for nothing back. Least I can do is make sure she knows it lands.

If she reads this: you're the most extraordinary person I know. And I know some extraordinary people. You've made me a better human just by being in the room. I love you more than this format allows.