Vandana Singh

“ I hope this small act can have a ripple effect ”

When we hear about cancer we hear things like ‘this famous person lost his life to cancer’ or ‘that person has been diagnosed with cancer’. We feel sad but it’s somewhat an empty sorrow that lacks empathy and compassion, as if it is impossible, unfathomable for this to happen to us or someone we know, as if all this is happening a world away from our reality. Maybe you’re thinking that there is no way this can happen to you or your closest ones. I believed that too !!!

On our recent trip back from visiting a friend who was unwell, my mum and I were talking and she said how we take our health and all that comes with it, for granted.I was shocked when she told me that recent research found out that 1 in 2 people in the UK will have some form of cancer during their lifetime.We had a long chat and it got me thinking , I came home and sat with my laptop and tried to find out .I came across the data from Young Lives vs Cancer.

Some of you reading this may have even felt the pain of loss from cancer but you feel somewhat at peace knowing that your beloved lead a fulfilled life.But there will be some reading this who know what it is like to see a young life cut short. People who have lost their own children to this disease known as cancer.Everyday approximately 250 children die from cancer. 250 young lives cut short every single day. 

What do you feel when you look at your child?  You feel pride, love, happiness but there is also fear. A small fear at the back of your mind that makes you breathe a sigh of relief at the end of every day, that makes you tense up when your child has gone for a check-up or appointment. For some parents, that fear has become their nightmarish reality. Every day of my life as a child, I have something to look forward to or feel happy and grateful for, even if it’s just being in good health. But there are children around the world who have nothing to hope for except the day that they make it out of hospital.Even if we can bring that day closer for just one child, isn’t it worth it? I am taking up the kids fundraising challenge for the charity ‘Young Lives vs Cancer’ for I strongly believe that small acts of kindness can have a ripple effect.

I wrote a few lines for all of us to take a moment and ponder that it’s just lines for us but a painful reality for many.

Together We Can Make A Difference

“One day I was awoken from a bed that was not mine.

I saw my mother’s face, covered in tears that made her shine.

Then I was lifted on to, a platform that felt like stone.

I was hurried through some corridors then soon I was alone.

Suddenly I became aware, of a consistent beeping that filled the air.

The sound of footsteps fills my ears.

A taste fills my mouth, the taste of tears.

When I finally saw the doctor,

though her face was grave, relief hit me in a giant wave.

I tried to speak and sure enough, out came my voice. 

But the words that tumbled from my mouth were not my words of choice.

Then I felt a searing pain racing through my head.

As my vision faded, I saw a burst of red, 

appearing on a monitor, then it quickly spread.

Then I was walking through a tunnel flooded with light.

Then there were angels who rescued me from my plight.

Though now I am at peace, I wish, I may, I might,

ever have a second chance to have a better life.”

Although I wrote this poem, it is depicting the fictional account of a child with brain cancer.