Sunday, July 10, 2011

Brain tumors, Frosted Flakes and Buddhism

Amy and I know three people who have some sort of brain cancer/tumor. That seems like a lot to me. According to the North American Brain Tumor Coalition, more than 44,500 people in the Unites States are diagnosed with a "primary tumor in the brain or spine each year."

The people we know with brain cancer were/are young (mid-30s) and healthy - one was a professional dancer/dance instructor and in fantastic shape when she was diagnosed.

All three people are still fighting the disease, but all three still have to fight.

What is particularly hard to deal with is one friend has a beautiful wife and two amazing children.

Amy mentioned that kids do not think of brain cancer, but rather think of other diseases such as lung cancer and heart attacks.

I never thought of those things as a kid. I only thought about when my favorite cartoon next aired, when basketball practice started and if we had enough Frosted Flakes in the house. I didn't even think about catching a cold or stubbing my toe (probably one of the reasons I stubbed my toes all the time).

I don't think kids *should* think about those things. Kids should be reckless and throw caution to the wind. That is the time to test your limits beyond proper safety limits, because that is the time when your body and mind can rebound the quickest/easiest from defeat and injury.

But such a stance makes life as a parent worrisome. I don't want Reese to hurt herself. I want her to be healthy and happy every day of her life. But that is not life. To borrow from Buddhist philosophy (or maybe it was from "The Princess Bride"), life is pain. And I want my daughter to live life to the fullest. So that, unfortunately, means she needs to experience pain.

But I don't want her to think about pain. I don't want her to worry about heart attacks and cancer. I don't want her to worry about bumps and bruises. I don't want her to worry about anything, actually. I just want her to live every day of her life with joy and love and happiness.

Pain happens. Cancer happens. Brain cancer happens. Let me worry about it. You go play and worry about Frosted Flakes.

1 comment:

Nicole S. said...

I call BS. Mom never bought us Frosted Flakes.