Bonus Days Magazine

The Autumn Issue of Bonus Days is here and this one feels especially close to my heart.

Filled with stories of the helpers, the people who show up, offer support and remind us that no one gets here alone.

I’m so proud to finally share it with you. 💙💚 Preorders are open now, and issues will begin mailing September 1.

There would not be a 7th issue without all of you.  Thank you for sharing your stories and supporting Bonus Days.

BonusDaysMag.com

One week until Issue 7 goes to print and apparently deadlines don’t care that I have an ACTH stimulation test this morning. 💙 Good thing editing works just fine from a hospital bed.

A perfect early morning 💚💙

Nothing keeps us from getting the next issue into your hands. We are all hard at work reading and rereading every word before we send to print. All of us are so excited to share this issue with you.
(So grateful for Shelbi who is proof reading poolside while on vacation 💗)

Today I had two appointments - an ultrasound and the dentist. In the waiting room at the dentist was the 5th issue of Bonus Days.

I always feel so much pride when I find the magazine out in the world. Maybe it will help the person who picks it up. Maybe it will help a family member better understand what their loved one is going through. Or maybe it will introduce someone to organ donation in a way they had never thought about before. 💙💚

After my appointments, I ran to FedEx because UT Southwestern ordered another 100 copies of Issue 6. They had already gone through the first 100.

It’s hard to put into words what that feels like.

I say it all the time - I started this magazine because I desperately wished something like it had existed when transplant became my last option. To know these stories are making their way into the hands of patients and families who need them is everything.

I’m so grateful to be mailing out another 100 copies of Issue 6. UT Southwestern has been with me since Issue 1, and that isn’t lost on me. I am so grateful for all of the centers that support the magazine - believing in these stories and for continuing to put them into the hands of the people who need them most. And I am so grateful that you are all here supporting Bonus Days. I am so glad you’re here.

Issue 7 will be ready for presale soon!

Everything is at design and while we wait to see the magic that Taylor designs - I’m just scrolling my camera roll looking at all of the bts of past issues. I can’t believe we are launching issue 7. This all started because I couldn’t find what I was looking for after my heart transplant. I am so proud of these pages. Can’t wait for everyone to see the Fall issue! Presale will be available in August 💚💙

A glamorous morning but an important one - full body skin check ☀️ Happy Wednesday

I walked through Raley’s Market in Merced, California crying. To be fair, I should admit I had been listening to Noah Kahan’s new album on repeat, so I’m going to blame at least one-third of the emotions on that. And some on pure exhaustion. In the span of a few days, I had traveled from Wilmington, Delaware, to Dallas, Texas, to Mesa, Arizona, before finally arriving in California.

I ran around with .kenine on one of the hottest days of the year. I tried on cowboy hats with . I hiked through the desert with and . And the overwhelming theme of every single one of those conversations, every single one of those stories, was this:

We are so much better together.

I want to tell you everything I learned from them, but I don’t want to spoil Issue 7. So for now I will just say this: there are people in this world who show up, who help, who quietly change the course of someone else’s life.

And then suddenly, after days of hearing stories about helpers, I found myself pushing a grocery cart through Raley’s filling it with all the things someone needs when they are moving into their very first apartment.

My son Jonas just moved across the country to begin his PhD in Physics. His first apartment. And as I put groceries into that cart, I was transported back twenty years. Back to when it was me and my first apartment.

My mom had already died. My dad, in his own way, was the person helping me step into adulthood. He showed up with what I needed. He helped me build the foundation of a life I couldn’t possibly see yet. And now somehow I was the parent. There was a time not that long ago when I didn’t know if I would get these moments of making sure your kid has enough forks and food in the freezer.

But I got to be there.

Because of my donor. Because of my doctors and nurses. Because of my family. Because of every helper who carried me here.

And the overwhelming reminder that none of us get anywhere alone.

Issue 7 all about the helpers in our lives will be available for preorder in August. 💙💚