This past weekend, my husband and my sister participated in St. Baldrick’s to support pediatrics cancer. One of our closest friends’ four year old son, Kannon, was diagnosed with Leukemia over a year ago. He has never stopped fighting since, and he’s in remission now, Kicking Cancer’s Tooshie. Kannon has become my family’s favorite super hero (click this link to read the blog I wrote about Kannon). This little boy has maintained his smile and strong character throughout the painful treatments and hospital visits. His parents have stayed strong and faithful and have become an inspiration through adversity.
Many family and friends came to show support for Kannon and the brave individuals that shaved their heads, who were able to raise over $25,000 for cancer research. It was an emotional sight and experience, being in that room, surrounded by people from all walks of life coming together for a common cause.
We had the opportunity to hear from a young man who was diagnosed with Leukemia at an early age and has overcome it since, but not before spending years in treatment, endless nights in the hospital, and more shots that anyone could count. He was a very well-spoken young man and had a simple yet powerful message that resonated with me and I’m hoping that it will resonate with you as well, and encourage you in your journey.
He made three simple points:
- Make friends at the hospital – you don’t want to be there if you’re thinking of the shots but you do want to go see your friends. Friends become our support system and our anchor through life’s challenges. Surround yourself with friends that build you up and support you.
- There is always someone having a worst day than you. This is so true. As we go through our struggles, sometimes we lose sight of the possibility that someone might be having a more challenging day than us.
- Stay in the present – live for the present. This is something most of us (especially me) struggle with. We spend so much time planning for the future, planning for what’s next, that we forget to live in the present, we forget to soak in the moment that’s right in front of us.
I hope you take these three points to heart and apply them. They are simple, and yet we take them all for granted.
We might think our life is tough and we are struggling until we hear about a child that is simply fighting cancer with a smile, how about if we try to have Kannon’s attitude at least for one day what are different that’s going to make in our life and the people around us, have faith be strong be KANNON