“Keani” by Dominique R.

            In honor of writing my blog entry on Valentine’s Day, I would like to share about a special person who lives in my heart, always and forever. Her name is Keani Barbadillo. She was one of my best friends and I liked to call her my sister-in-law. Keani was my older brother’s girlfriend. I met Keani about two years ago, one night when my older brother brought her home to meet the family. In that moment, I thought that I was meeting just another one of my brother’s superficial girlfriends. However, the minute Keani introduced herself, smiled, and embraced me; I knew she was someone very special. My family and I fell in love with Keani the moment we met her. On that night Keani told us about herself. She graduated from the University of Hawaii. Keani was half-Hawaiian and half-Mexican. She was gorgeous; she was 5’10”, thin, and had a bright smile. Keani also had this natural beauty about her. She was kind, she was sweet, and she had a heart that made you feel loved and special. Keani appreciated everything that she had; she was true to herself and always found the good in others.

Conversation flowed naturally, effortlessly as my younger sisters and I began to talk to her. My younger sister, Angelique shared that she loves the Hunger Games series and really wants to go to the midnight premiere of the movie. Our older brother, Rene’ said, “We’ll see, sis” but his girlfriend, Keani immediately exclaimed, “Yes, let’s go see it! It’s a date, girl!” And surely enough, the next time I saw Keani was on Thursday, March 22 when she and Rene’ went and watched the midnight screening of the Hunger Games film with Angelique and me. We had a blast that night. I have enjoyed every minute spent with Keani. One of my fondest memories with Keani was when Keani, Rene’, my younger sisters, and I went to the Etiwanda Boys Varsity CIF Basketball home game. We were all rocking our “No Shnacks” shirts, eating candy and snacks, and enjoying the Eagle-Victory game. We had so much fun that night.

Keani adored and loved my older brother, Rene’ to pieces. Rene’ plays professional basketball in Mexico. So at the end of last summer, he returned to Mexico to begin playing basketball for the season. Keani missed Rene’ terribly, and also missed seeing my sisters and me since Rene’ was away from home. Even though Rene’ was not home, Keani came over to my house to visit my family and me. When she came over, we decided to get out of the house and go to Target. Target adventures with Keani are the best. We walked around, talked, snacked on popcorn, and drank ICEEs. I felt like I was just hanging out and chilling with my big sister on a great Saturday afternoon.

Keani truly became part of my family and we became part of hers. Keani comes from a huge family full of love and joy. After meeting Keani’s family, I saw where she gets her kind, bubbly, and outgoing personality.  Keani would go to church with Rene’ and the rest of my family some Sunday mornings. She would join us and go out to eat dinner with my family on the weekends. Keani would also join us by hanging out on family movie nights. That is when I just knew Keani would be my sister-in-law. She loved to spend time with my family, whether it was by watching a movie, going to church, eating dinner, or going on a Target adventure.  She fit into the Rougeau family perfectly and effortlessly. 

I admired Keani tremendously. Keani was determined, she was a fighter, and she was a giver. Keani battled and overcame Leukemia when she was only 19 years old. Leukemia is cancer of the white blood cells. Unfortunately, my beloved Keani had to battle against leukemia again when she was 24. Along with Rene’ and my family, I would visit Keani at the City of Hope hospital almost every weekend. Every time Keani had to go through chemotherapy, her strength and optimism was put to the test. She would always try to distract herself from the pain and negativity by focusing on others. My family and I would pray with Keani and write her encouraging bible verses every time we visited her. Keani took each day as a gift; she learned to live in the moment, to live each day to the fullest and enjoy everything and everyone that she loved.

On July 25, 2013 everything changed. My dearest Keani passed away and is now with Jesus and all the angels in heaven. I miss my beloved Keani very much, everyday. She leaves behind wonderful memories of so much joy and laughter. Keani was beautiful, she was radiant, and to know her was to love her. She was the perfect combination of elegance, sincerity, and grace. I think about Keani every day. Within the year and a half that I knew Keani, she taught me the true meaning of faith. She taught me how to have hope and never give up, even in the worst of times. She taught me that courage is about overcoming our fears.