Today is World Cancer Day. For us, cancer is a memory; next week my son Ben goes to Survivor Clinic.
SURVIVOR CLINIC
Those two words that were but a dream 7 years ago.
How did we get from there to here? With many people pushing, pulling and carrying us.
The doctors, nurses, aids, custodians, food service workers, pathologists, pharmacists, child life specialists, and many more people who work at the hospital, to imbue a toxic cure.
The scientists who transformed childhood leukemia from a death sentence to a long-ass haul of treatment and cure.
The family members (mom and dad, especially you) who walked so many steps on the path right along with us, from hearing the first diagnosis to last treatment day, and many in between, before and since. Who prayed diligently, brought dozens of meals, gifts, and tangible support in so many forms. The texts from afar from family checking in on us religiously.
The friends who helped us drive kids, let us dump them on you and also brought meals and help.
Medical insurance and Children’s Special Healthcare Services, offsetting what had to be millions of dollars in expenses, to make our bills manageable.
But mostly we’re here because of the resilience of a child. A child who fought back. A child whose thirst for life exceeded his body’s frailty. A child who doesn’t ever give up, and kept us all laughing through it all.
There is so much more work to do. There are many who don’t survive, many children. There are many forms of cancer that fight back far harder than ALL.
Today I join the crowd, pushing, pulling and carrying others who are now walking that path. Please walk with me, and make a donation to a cancer organization of your choice, in honor of Ben’s survival, in honor of your loved one, or in memory. Let’s push back this darkness once and for all.
(This post originally appeared on Ben’s Writing, Running Mom)
About the author: Alethea is a runner, a gardener, a special needs mom, and a writer. She has been happily married for time immemorial, and thinks way too much. If you want to read more from her, give her a gander at https://benswritingrunningmom.me.
