Amy Krouse Rosenthal, the terminally-ill author of an absolutely heart-rending essay calling for someone to date her husband after her passing, has died of ovarian cancer. She was 51.
Rosenthal’s piece, You May Want To Marry My Husband, went viral after being published by The New York Times’ Modern Love section ten days ago. In it, Rosenthal’s emotions for husband Jason overflowed, as she wrote “the following list of attributes is in no particular order because everything feels important to me in some way.”
The piece explored Jason’s qualities through the eyes of someone who knew she wouldn’t be able to see them for much longer. Rosenthal wrote “Jason paints. I love his artwork. I would call him an artist except for the law degree that keeps him at his downtown office most days from 9 to 5. Or at least it did before I got sick.”
“If you’re looking for a dreamy, let’s-go-for-it travel companion, Jason is your man. He also has an affinity for tiny things: taster spoons, little jars, a mini-sculpture of a couple sitting on a bench, which he presented to me as a reminder of how our family began.”
As a parent, a writer, a spouse, and a friend, Amy Krouse Rosenthal was what I wanted to be when I grew up.
— John Green (@johngreen) March 13, 2017
Her last book, the brilliant Textbook Amy Krouse Rosenthal, ended: “Bye. I love you. Thank you.” Goodbye, Amy. I love you. Thank you.
— John Green (@johngreen) March 13, 2017
Amy Krouse Rosenthal beckoned loveliness. And it came. Rest in peace, Amy. Thanks for making the world a brighter place to live.
— RJ Palacio (@RJPalacio) March 13, 2017
Rest in peace, Amy Krouse Rosenthal. And thanks for sharing this beauty with us. https://t.co/Ht0kkYEnZ0 pic.twitter.com/jTf4mvZvRq
— Saira Khan (@sairakh) March 13, 2017
R.I.P.