Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Soap Box Special.

Picture it.

Your child is sick. Your child is battling a disease that just the word itself instills a bone chilling fear. Everyone knows someone who has battled the disease or has succumbed to it. A sister, friend, mom, dad, brother, child, adult. Whomever it was. It was scary. It could be disheartening. Many parents visit their sleeping child buried in a cemetery instead of picking them up from school.

It does not discriminate. It does not choose. It is relentless. It is atrocious.

Are you scared? I don't think that my words are actually scaring you, it is the word....CANCER.

I know so many victims of this disease. I hate the word. Some victims are survivors and some lost the battle, but won the war. Children are suffering. Adults are suffering. Parents are suffering. Grandparents are suffering. As.I.Type.This.Post.Children.Are.Suffering.

St. Jude.

A word that gives hope instead of despair. That is determined to save babies, children, moms, dad's, etc. We all want to save them. Right? We all want a cure, Right?

Well, you cannot find a cure if you are not funded. I truly believe that we are close. I also believe that the government and insurance companies and hospitals are killing our chance of this. But that is another subject for another time and only a opinion.

For now, I want to discuss what we can do. What can we do to help a hospital that has a goal to fight this battle. I want to do something.

I have always wanted to do more. But how? I don't know. I have considered many things. But I have determined that the best way to help is to bring awareness to the subject. Cancer. Oh how I hate this word.

My grandma is an angel in heaven. She died young. She had cancer.

My friends beautiful daughter fought the disease. She did this with grace. She is a warrior. She survived. But not without a big, huge fight. Her parents are in fear still to this day. Praying that the beast isn't lurking in the dark, waiting to rear it's ugly head again. Living in fear. What a disheartening thought.

My aunt, my special aunt. The first person whom I told I was pregnant. She no longer resides on earth, but still lives in my heart. I miss her.

My neighbor. A mother of younger children. Battling cancer. She will survive. I pray she will survive.

You can help without digging into your pockets. How?

Call the local hospital or cancer center. Run in a Mile Race for cancer. Walk in a walk-a-thon. Be a respite friend to a parent of a sick child. Take over care while they go to supper with their other children or to even take a shower. They usually cannot leave their sick child. Your own children can help. We all have a job. There are so many ways. Help with fundraising. You can do it.

Awareness. Are you aware?

I'm off my soap box now. This is not a downer post. Don't even go there. Nobody likes to be told that cancer can attack anyone, your own family. But you must count your blessings and do a deed. It could be something so small and with as much effort as you choose to give. Anything and Everything matters.

I'm not feeling down, I'm feeling invigorated. I can help. I will help. I love people too much to not help and most of all I love kids way to much to sit around and hope someone else is helping.

7 comments:

Laski said...

Awe . . . you are just a doll up there on that soap box.

What heart . . .

Kat said...

I HATE the word cancer too. I'm so sick of it. It really run rampant in my family. Just really pisses me off.
I have been a huge fan of St. Jude's for a long time now and did a couple fundraisers for them. I love that place!!!!

Putting the FUN in DysFUNctional said...

So true, and so many people just sit around and talking about helping....I wish they'd get up and DO IT!

GypsiAdventure said...

Yep, it is pretty scary...even more so when you think about a young life and cancer. Living here, in Memphis, with St. Jude everywhere-it makes it very real but also very beautiful. Being able to see the people and the miracles each day is enough to make me a believer, that is a lot of the reason why I choose to run the St. Jude Marathon...just trying to do my part!
~K

Anonymous said...

From the first sentence I knew exactly where you were going with this post. I wrote a poem about Cancer after my father died and that was one of the lines, "It does not discriminate". Cancer sucks. It took my father away from me long before his time...before he could ever see me buy a house on my own, meet and fall in love with the man of my dreams, get married...and even before someday holding his grandchild in his arms. I will forever hate Cancer and all that it does to tear apart families. My grandmother is currently fighting cancer and I don't believe she will be victorious. I belong to the Colon Cancer Alliance and donate when I can. I buy daffodils to support the American cancer Society. Those St. Jude commercials really tug at my heart.
Thank you for this post, from everyone who has every suffered a loss, or been a survivor...

Unknown said...

You GO girl!! :)

Tara R. said...

You are awesome... I love St. Judes. That facility has meant life for so many children. The work and research that's done there is phenomenal. Bless you for championing this cause.