In Our Journey of Life We Should Not Walk Alone

22. December 2010 by Kelly.

I have a younger brother, he turned 47 last Friday the 17th, according to Google his home is 5.5 miles or less than 15 minutes from my home, his name is Steven and prefers Steve, and I nicknamed him Ivan many years ago. He has a wife, 3 children; one from his current wife and two from his first marriage, his wife’s name is Dawn.We called him last Friday to wish him a Happy Birthday and to catch up on the goings on of he and his family; Dawn he said had just undergone a mastectomy and was half way through chemo . . . I lost my breath and I could sense through the phone that my little brother was choking back tears, as was I. The prognosis at this point is positive and Dawn and her doctors are planning removing her other breast when she completes chemo, she will then have a complete hysterectomy and then have reconstructive surgery of her breasts; Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. He went on to say that he had been without work between July and October but had found a new job  that he is enjoying if at least for the income, but he was happy to have work as Dawn has been unable to work for obvious reason;  their son Jack, 8 years old seems to be doing well.I asked if he had a cake and meal as my concern turned back to him and his birthday; he explained that some friends had brought a cake and that Dawn attempted to fix a nice meal, but she became sick in doing so; so he went out and picked up something to eat. I told him I would fix them some meals so that he didn’t have to worry about cooking after working all day and so Dawn wouldn’t have to worry about it either.In my mind I am thinking that their son is 8 years old and needs to eat a good meal after a busy day as an 8 year old and hopefully this is one less burden on Steven and Dawn’s plate. I was also concerned about groceries and household supplies but he told me that Dawn’s coworkers had brought over a ‘truck load’ of things and that my offer of some meals would be sufficient for now. I also assured him that we would prepare Christmas dinner for his family.Last night he stopped by to pick up the meals we had prepared, his eyes red as his hair I could tell that this entire ordeal is an emotional roller coaster for him, but it was good to see him and he was very grateful for what we had done.This was the first time I have seen my brother in well over two years; he has a family to care for and so do I and even though we live so close to each other, we are not very close at all. Cancer is such an ugly thing; Steven and I lost our father to cancer 26 years ago and as we have grown older (thankfully) we have lost friends and family to this deadly thing. I pray for Dawn to recover, heal and survive, so that my brother’s tears are those of happiness. And I pray that all of you will reach out to those that mean the most to you; if you need help seek it and have you have help and love to give, please give it.

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