This is the face that I fight for.
A fire has been lit within my heart in recent months to connect with other families going through the battle of childhood cancer. I offer whatever I can ... Prayers, encouragement, information, Violet's survival story, handmade hats from our shop for their children ... anything that can help. I know that every act of kindness that you can get when your child is in treatment and in monitoring makes a world of difference.
When Violet was diagnosed with cancer, a few very kind friends reached out to me and offered the contact information of other families they knew were going through the same with their children. At the time, I could not bring myself to contact these families. It was too much. I have so much empathy that when I talk to someone on the phone who has a cold I start to feel symptoms, so I just could not imagine taking on more than our own battle with cancer as it was overwhelming. I needed all of my strength to get my family through it. It is very much in my nature to give and help others, but at this time I needed to allow myself to be the one to accept the help. It was an extremely humbling experience.
Even though I knew that I could not directly contact other families, I felt a strong need to document Violet's story from the beginning to educate others on this form of cancer. Josh and I had been trying to conceive a child for over 4 years before we got pregnant with Violet. I was so ready (and that is an understatement!) to have a baby. I am a planner and I had read every book from start to finish on what I needed to be prepared for our baby and what I needed to make sure that she would have the best in care. But, nowhere had I ever even heard of Retinoblastoma. And, if I had, I would have requested the simple eye test for our baby at her well checks. Or we can look at it this way ... If the medical powers that be would have implemented and made this simple test mandatory for the well being of our children, it would have been done for Violet. If this would have happened for her, the cancerous tumor would have been found earlier on and she may not have had to go through surgeries, 6 months of damaging chemotherapy and she may not have had to lose most of the sight in her left eye.
So what can change all of this for another family? It all begins with awareness.
It's safe to say that most people know October is breast cancer awareness month and that the awareness ribbon color is pink. That is a wonderful thing because there is power in that knowledge. Because there is so much awareness in our country of breast cancer, there are preventative measures practiced, many large and amazing fundraisers for research in treatment/research for a cure and treatments have been improved and are more effective than 20 years ago. I thank God for these advancements and continue to pray for a cure.
Do you know what month childhood cancer awareness is? Do you know what the awareness ribbon color is? Most do not. Because of the lack of awareness, childhood cancer research is grossly underfunded. From recent articles, I have found out that only 1 new drug has been made in the last 20 years to treat childhood cancers. 1 ... in 20 years! The treatments that are given to children are mostly hand me down drugs that were created to treat adults. Why is this? Don't our children deserve much more?
I saw this ecard on Facebook today ...
This may be harsh to some, but it really struck a chord with me. The person that created this card obviously feels the hurt and frustration in their heart about the lack of willingness in their peers to join them in spreading awareness. Sadly, I understand it. I also understand from talking with others that it is a very hard thing for some to take in and accept. They don't know what to say, they don't know what they can do, they don't know if other's will want to hear about it/see it or if others will see them as a downer for posting or sharing about it. I get that. But, really, whether you dive in to make a difference (big or small) or you don't because it is too harsh of a reality to face ... either way you chose, children are dying every single day from cancer. It doesn't go away because you chose to ignore it.
The other day I saw a mother post a video of her child going through treatment. Someone had the nerve to bash her for sharing as they said it was inappropriate. It broke my heart. God forgive that person for throwing stones, because it is those types of brave parents that are sharing their experiences that bring others into the reality of what happens to these children. It is extremely difficult, to say the least, to share photos and video of your child going through the most horrible times. But, these parents do it to help educate and spread awareness in hopes that it will lead to changing things for the better. For the 36 families who have a child diagnosed with cancer every single day it is reality and people need to see it so they can realize how much help is needed.
Please pray without ceasing for these families and these children. Do more if you are able! Join me in the fight to raise awareness for our babies. Here are some ways that you can help:
Donate or Volunteer
www.sparrowclubs.org
Sparrow Clubs is proof that you’re never too young to make a difference. As the nation’s only youth-based charity of its kind, Sparrow Clubs not only provides financial and emotional support for critically ill children and their families, but also empowers kids to help kids through charitable service to their communities. Thanks to sponsorship funding, the Sparrow family, school and community benefit in immeasurable ways.
www.curesearch.org
CureSearch for Children's Cancer funds and supports targeted and innovative children's cancer research with measurable results, and is the authoritative source of information and resources for all those affected by children's cancer.
Gift a Child With Joy
https://www.etsy.com/listing/150671485/gift-a-violet-brielle-hat-to-a-brave?ref=shop_home_active
http://joyjars.negu.org/request-a-joy-jars/
http://www.kissthetoadcreations.com/#!donate/c8k2
http://angelblanketministries.org/Request_a_Blanket.html
Pray
https://www.facebook.com/KidsPrayerNetwork?fref=ts
https://www.facebook.com/prayernetwork1?fref=ts
September is childhood cancer awareness month and the ribbon color is gold! I pray that everyone becomes aware of this and that proper funds are raised to find cures for our children.
Comments
Post a Comment