I love this photo design project that Lisette Gruelke did with a photo she took of Ethan and a poem he wrote. It was when he was 11, and today it has been 11 years since his medulloblastoma diagnosis.
You may be able to lower your odds of bad events occurring to you, but you cannot eliminate them, and so it is what it is often. No going backwards, no 'what if's". So as we continue into the second decade post-cancer, ot would be nice to look forward more than we look backward. Easier said than done, I am afraid.
One piece of making lemonade out of lemons for me has been a small non-profit that my friend Nancy and I have to publish four books on how to cope with childhood cancer and survivorship (http://childhoodcancerguides.org/). Major pediatric treatment centers have long purchased our books for newly diagnosed families, but not everyone is treated in such a setting, and as the information related to challenges faced by childhood cancer survivors related to their treatment increase, we hope that the books can be more generally available. Our first attempt at disseminating this information toa wider audience began with getting a table at the American Library Association's annual meeting, and between ourselves and three of our children, we spread to word to anyone who would listen. And it felt good. We heard from all sorts of people, some of whom had very sad stories to tell, but it was really heartwarming to hear that we had helped them. In a perfect world, no one would have to walk in the shoes that we have walked in, but second best is helping those who follow with information and hope that it is survivable.
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