Why I complete the Mother's Day Classic
As you may have noticed on our social media accounts, yesterday Malene and I, with both our girls, completed a 4km walk as part of the Mother's Day Classic at the Coolart Homestead and Wetands in Somers on the beautiful Mornington Peninsula.
Today, I thought I'd share a little about why for the past 2 years have completed the Mother's Day Classic and why I will continue to support Breast Cancer research (Mum, I won't be at all offended if you choose not to continue reading this)
For as long as I can remember, I have supported the research that goes into the prevention and treatment of Breast Cancer, but for me, it was a nameless disease. While I knew the 1 in 8 statistic, I didn't really know anyone who had been affected. Regardless, I never missed supporting a fundraiser or cancer charity and always bought multiple Pink Ribbon pins and merchandise items.
However just over a year ago, my whole world came crashing down when I heard the words 'it's very bad'. At the age of 54, my Mum had been diagnosed with terminal Stage 4 metastatic Breast Cancer. How does a daughter come to terms with the idea of losing their Mum? Making it worse, I was the eldest of five children - 3 girls and 2 boys, and had a daughter of my own. What did Mum's diagnosis mean for all of us?
We were initially told that Mum had a 3 month expectancy - most of which was likely to be spent in hospital. The cancer had spread throughout the body and had affected the calcium within her body, significantly affecting her bone strength. This meant that walking again was looking highly unlikely.
Mother's Day last year, we completed the Mother's Day Classic in Ballarat, completing a 6km walk around Lake Wendouree, with the afternoon spent by Mum's bed in at the Ballarat Hospital. It may not have been the way any of us wanted to spend the day, but at least we were all together.
Flash forward a year, and Mum has defied her initial diagnosis - while sadly her expected outcome is the same, she's fought her battle with an amazing strength, that I personally often don't share. She saw the arrival of her grandson (my nephew Henry) and celebrated Isabella's 6th birthday last September, and we all had a great Christmas together as a family.
I have no way of predicting how the rest of this year will play out, or how Breast Cancer will continue to affect my family in the future, but for now, we celebrate every little milestone and we no longer take things for granted. This past year has taught me just how important it is to appreciate the little things.
Breast Cancer for me is no longer a nameless disease that I support each year. It is now, and will always be a big part of our lives. This is why Isabella and I will wherever possible complete the Mother's Day Classic and why we live for the day that no other family has to experience a year like we have.
