Sophia Popovskaia was born in Toledo, Ohio. The family relocated to California when Sophia was only four months old. She was the first American born in her immigrant family.
Sophia’s family moves from Northern California to Los Angeles.
Uprooted by her parents' divorce, Sophia embarked on a nomadic life with her father, sister, and stepmother moving from California to St. Louis, Missouri. St. Louis' suburbs yielded to Portland, then Eugene before settling in Issaquah, Washington, marking each stop with both the excitement of new beginnings and the bittersweet pang of goodbyes.
“Ever since I was born in Ohio, I never really grew up in one home. Our first move was from Ohio to California and, as I had been just been born at that time, I remember nothing about my birthplace, our detour back to Russia for about a year, or our first home in California. Over the next seven years in my life, my dad moved our family into apartment after apartment in this great state, until we ended up in Calabasas. I only have a few scattered memories of the first apartments; a white cat in an elevated apartment, a Brooklyn nanny with a fat little sausage dog, but of Calabasas I have many. Those first apartments were like my introduction to life and Calabasas was my chance to live in it. While it feels untrue to say that my sister and I actually grew up in Calabasas, we did spend a big part of our childhood there. However, when we left to live with my dad and stepmother in St. Louis, after our parent’s divorce, we were certainly no less childish in personality than we had been when we arrived. Our time in St. Louis was characterized by the house we had, the house that came straight from the ridiculously un-realistic fabrication most people in the Midwest call the American Dream. It was spacious, with wooden floors and so many rooms that we had to make up uses for some, like the ‘toy room’, and, for a time, we even marked our height on the garage door. When I lived in that house, it was almost like I was living the demo of a life I could have, a life I could have if I wasn’t the daughter of an immigrant and the soon to be survivor of cancer. When my stepmom had to move to Canada, and we sold the house, I always had a hope in the back of my mind that someday we would return to it but we never did live in that house, or any other house for that matter. Today, my dad finally has a house in North Carolina, but I live with my mom, here in Santa Monica. Now, as I have grown older and lived in so many different cities, however, I know that a house is not necessary for a true home.”
Diagnosed with Medulloblastoma in December 2005, Sophia moved to Santa Monica to live with her mother and older sister. Their support system expanded further with the arrival of grandmother Tamara, who relocated from Siberia to aid in Sophia's care.
Following major brain surgery, Sophia undertakes extensive treatment with chemo and radiation, spending the first half of the year at Cedar-Sinai and Children's Hospital LA. Through intensive rehabilitation, she regained basic capabilities like walking, and writing. Returning to school in September 2006, she relies on a wheelchair and an eyepatch to manage double vision, yet her scholarship to New Roads School on the Malibu campus marked a triumph of perseverance.
Despite double vision, Sophia thrived in school and started walking with support from teachers, friends and especially a school staff member - Shelton Sharpe. Her strength grows allowing her independence. However, complications with her shunt required surgery in November 2007, followed by a cancer relapse in December.
Juggling intensive treatments like bone marrow transplants and chemotherapy, Sophia remained committed to her education. She attended school as much as her health allowed, while studying from home during her recovery periods. Her dedication paid off in June 2008, when she graduated New Roads Middle School with straight A's and Honors, earning the "Best Human Being" award for her character.
GENDER: Being a girl, I think a lot of my comedy goes way past certain guys. There isn’t a big difference between girls and boys I think, just intelligence. Guys take a path where they don’t have to be very intelligent, and society does kind of support that. I’m sure if, instead of inventing complicated relationships between our dolls when we were young and instead pretending to shoot each other, girls would see more eye to eye with guys.
AGE: I’m 14 and the sad thing is that I’ve come to realize that adults and young adults don’t see me as “cute” any more, and yet I’m not even considered “mature enough” to join in adult discussions. So I am stuck somewhere in the middle and right now I feel like a fly stuck on a windshield, and the drivers of the car just see me as a bother.
MOVEMENT: Because I had brain surgery at one point, I have only recently begun walking in a straight line. And even now I am still faulty. My old walk made me look like I was drunk half the time. I can only imagine what people thought of me. It’s a wonder I didn’t get arrested, because I probably would’ve failed that test that they give drunk people.
HEALTH: I am a cancer survivor, so before you say “awww” or “im sorry” think of this: I get practically everything free. I mean we (cancer survivors) all do. I got a cruise to the Bahamas with two other people for free, plus one thousand dollars just to spend. I get free morphine. And If I make a sad face I usually get more than needed. I get overly expensive clothes from random companies. I get invited to random parties that somehow involve hanging out with celebrities. I am even set for college, because there are scholarships free for cancer survivors.
ABNORMALITIES: Disregarding all the other reasons while I’m abnormal, I have silicon in my head. This is so abnormal because silicon does not sink. At all. I can’t dive anymore; you should see my kicking furiously at water and not getting anywhere. I can’t drown either, it’s physically impossible.
HEREDITY: I guess I got pretty good genes from my parents. Unfortunately though, I got my dad’s eyebrows. And lately I’ve been thinking I got his boobs too…
OCCUPATION/ABILITIES: I am constantly psychoanalyzing people. Someone tells me about a problem and I instantly give them advice. And I’m not saying it’s good advice either. I guess now I want to be a therapist.
HOMELIFE: I have a very dysfunctional family. They are probably the reason why I decided to become a therapist. My parents are divorced and my sister was a wild child. Kind of like in that cartoon show where the dog always has to save the family and it always looks at the camera to say “The things I do for love.”
IQ/INTELLECT: I guess I am pretty much smart. I’m a nerd. It’s really quite horrible sometimes, I can’t even watch more than two hours of TV without thinking about it.
CHILDHOOD: I had a very unique childhood. Until I was sevenish, I grew up in an apartment complex in Calabasas. I envy my childhood years because I was so creative. Then I made up like witches brew and I could make forts. I wish I could’ve been young forever.
MANNERS: I was brought up to be polite but lately I recognize all the setbacks that come with my politeness. Teachers are unusually friendly to me. And I just can’t say “No”. Doctors torture me, friends make me go through so much trouble and I just can’t say STOP.
AMUSEMENTS: Not many things amuse me. Like it’s really sad but when I’m with my friends and they are all laughing about something I am usually forcing myself to laugh. Like that may seem weird but most things just don’t make me laugh. I smile but that’s usually the extent of it. And then really really random things make me laugh, so I’m usually laughing by myself. Very odd.
READING: One of the geekiest things about me: I love to read. I wish sometimes that I could just be a sweet little girl who reads and is all mysterious and shit but I’m too crazy. So reading is just what I do when I have time and it’s just a part of my life.
AMBITIONS: Right now I have one goal and that is to be a model. I don’t care how childish is I’ve already imagined the way I will talk about my little girl self and how I always wanted to be a model and I will use my cancer survivorness to make Tyra Banks notice me and accept me and that’s my plan.
SUPERSTITIONS: I don’t really have any superstitions except for karma, if that can even be considered a superstition. I’m always watching myself to see when I act mean or something. And I somehow have this paranoid fear that karma includes what I think so I’m always thinking things like “Her hair is really ugly…AAGH! I SHOULDN’T HAVE THOUGHT THAT. OH I SHOULDN’T THINK ABOUT IT! AGAH”
IMAGINATION: I have an extremely vivid imagination. I am always thinking of the weirdest things…it would probably really shock someone if they found out. And this always adds interest to my dreams. I have had the weirdest dreams in the world.
Embarking on a new journey, Sophia began at New Roads High School while also volunteering for TEENLINE, a confidential helpline for teens. In July 2009, a third cancer diagnosis rocked their world. Deemed untreatable, Sophia's mother dedicated herself to her care, leaving her job and embarking on a memorable cross-country trip with Sophia and Paulina in a rented van, traveling from LA to North Carolina to visit Sophia's father and family.
When back in Los Angeles by fall 2009, Sophia continued her studies from home, returning to school when possible. Despite her illness, she persevered with her photography passion, continuing her field trips with her mentor and friend, David Kurtz.
As Sophia's final months unfolded, her biology teacher, Eric Cleveland, paid regular home visits for biology lessons. Using his free time to help the girls to plant a vegetable garden on the apartment porch that became a beacon of normalcy.
In November 2009, Sophia's family welcomed a new addition: her half-brother, Philip, born to her father, Sergei, and stepmother, Oksana.
Despite declining health, Sophia planned to join TEENLINE, a helpline for teens, offering the kind of support she herself had found invaluable.
Sophia's father, Sergei, and stepmother, Oksana, brought the baby brother for a visit to Santa Monica. When Phil, brought by his parents, arrived in Santa Monica, Sophia's heart brimmed with an unimaginable love for her brother. One of her last wishes for her big sister was to watch her brother grow.
As Sophia approached her 16th birthday, the cancer spread further in her body, but her spirit remained undimmed. On her last birthday, a train ride to Santa Barbara with her sister became a poignant quest, culminating in the purchase of a dress - not for a party, but for her own wake. Back in LA, family and friends rallied, transforming a birthday celebration into a testament to a life brimming with love, hosted by the ever-supportive Stephanie Glass Solomon.
The aggressive tumor continued to spread, and doctors could not offer hope for improvement. Sophia's health deteriorated rapidly. Seizures and loss of mobility confined her to bed, requiring full-time care. Hospice professionals set up a loving and comfortable environment in her Santa Monica apartment to manage her comfort and pain.
Sophia's breathing became infrequent, signaling the approach of her final hours. Around 5 pm Paulina is brought by our landlord and a family friend from her high school. Sophia's breaths grow fainter, her loved ones - family and close friends gathered around Sophia, holding hands. As sunset paints the sky, a final, graceful smile on Sophia’s face precedes the last exhale. Her life stops at 7:17pm PST, one month after her 16th birthday.
Light is a collection of poetry, artwork, diary entries, and photography by Sophia Popovski.
Light is dedicated to the memory of Sophia Popovski. (April 21, 1994 - May 21, 2010)
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