I'm taking on Cancer Council's The Longest Day again...
…and sharing my motivation for a second year:
“A Personal Story:
On 9 December this year, I'm taking on the The Longest Day Challenge - testing my skill, strength, and stamina by playing four rounds of golf in a single day to support the Cancer Council and raise funds for those affected by cancer.
For context: on average, a round of golf takes around four hours and includes approximately 10kms of walking. Multiply those numbers by four and we can certainly call it a challenge.
Now, many of us would be aware that the Cancer Council is a community-funded organisation, working in local communities to help support people as they navigate their cancer journey.
We can all agree that work is really important and could expect that alone is motivation enough for me to commit and post this message; however, if I'm honest with you?
I'm doing it for Mum.
Picture this: you're 30 years of age, your daughter is almost three, you've recently bought a house with your husband (who's running his own business), and you've just given birth to your second child and son, Christopher (i.e., this guy).
Your gynaecologist then calls you in for an 'earlier than normal' postnatal check-up to tell you they've found something on your cervix.
You're rushed to Westmead Hospital in Sydney for a biopsy.
It's your daughter's third birthday and seven weeks after your second child is born.
You're diagnosed with cancer.
You start chemotherapy within two days.
You're operated on four months later.
You commence radiotherapy shortly after and are growing your hair back in many of the photos you have with your newborn baby.
Sounds unimaginable, right?
Well, that was my Mum's story back in 1988 and 1989, and is something that she still lives with to this day (psychologically, no doubt, but also through Lymphoedema (a condition caused, in many cases, due to the removal of lymph glands)).
Probably goes without saying now, but Mum has been a constant inspiration, to not only my sister and I, but also for my broader family and for those that know her.
She's just the greatest, and I share this, one, because I can't highlight enough to Mum just how much her strength, courage, care and determination has inspired and meant to us growing up and, two, to acknowledge that many in our lives would have similar personal stories of people in their own families or social networks.
To put it simply: stories like this are why these initiatives are so important and it's why I'm sharing it today.
Every donation helps, team. Likely more than we can comprehend.
Thanks for reading and thanks again, Mum. For all of it.”