This Six-Year-Old Cancer Victim Died. Three Days Later Her Mom Found Something In Her Sock Drawer That Left Her Shocked

Elena’s doctor had tragic news for the little girl’s parents, Keith and Brooke. Their daughter had a rare form of pediatric brain cancer. It was inoperable, and she only had 135 days left to live. Keith and Brooke promised each other not to tell Elena that she might not make it. They wanted her to be able to enjoy her last days of life. Elena was so sick she had trouble swallowing and talking. To communicate with her parents, she began to write notes. But what they didn’t know was that Elena was hiding some of those notes around the house.

Elena with her little sister eating icecream

Keith and Brooke tried to make every day special for Elena and her younger sister, Gracie. So together as a family, they did everything that Elena wanted to do. She died in August 2007 - but her parents Keith, 34, and Brooke, 35, and her younger sister Gracie, who was five at the time, say they have been finding the notes and drawings she left behind ever since.

One of the pictures hidden by Elena in the last nine months of her short life

She hid the notes between dishes, in drawers, in books. In all of them she said that she loved her family. In one of the notes she even asked her father's forgiveness for being ill.

Mr Desserich who runs a construction company,"We found the first ones a few days after she died but then they kept on showing up everywhere and now we have three large boxes full of them. We even found them in the bags of Christmas decorations."

Elena with her little sister at Christmas in 2005

For months, her parents found notes scattered throughout the house when they least expected it. Each note they found was a blow that reminded them that their daughter was gone, but at the same time a blessing that reminded them that their daughter had loved them in the short time she was on this earth.

Elena’s dad, Keith Desserich told,"She was a child who was wise beyond her years. I hate to think she knew she was dying but I think she did."

Some notes only said "I love you," and others were more detailed with nice drawings of hearts. Some were even tips addressed to her younger sister to prepare her for school. With all the notes they collected they decided to publish a book telling the story of Elena and share her notes with the world. They titled the book "Notes Left Behind."

Desserich Family

Mr Desserich said,"She was a wonderful little girl, She loved books, they were her passion. She said she wanted to grow up to be a teacher. She loved to nurture people and she was always so bright."

Elena’s mom, Brooke Desserich, told,"I think the notes were her way of telling us that everything would be OK. It feels like a hug from her every time we find one."

All proceeds from the book are going to the Cure Starts Now Cancer Foundation, one of the only charities dedicated to finding a unified cure for all forms of cancer.

Rest in peace, Elena. Obviously she was a very special girl who loved her family very much. And through these notes, her memory will live forever.