2010 design
My name is Aeronwy Cording, and I am a History, Social Studies
and English teacher from Christchurch. To people who have
only just met me, I am a happy and bubbly individual who is
passionate about her job, who loves her family (and her pet cat)
and who is ready for any challenge that life has to throw at
her.
What most people would never guess is that I was diagnosed with
an acute form of leukaemia 2 months after my 14th
birthday. I was sitting in class one day and my leg started to
ache. I walked home and it got even worse. By bed time I was in
agony. By morning it was fine again. So I forgot about it.
Fast forward to 2 months later and my legs were continually
aching. I had hour long nose-bleeds, I would collapse after walking
short distances. I developed a really nasty chest infection. The
GP, after 4 visits, sent me away to get tested for glandular fever.
Four hours later I was admitted into hospital with dangerously low
blood counts and marrow packed with cancer. I, of course, did not
know this at the time- but my new life had just started.
In two years of chemotherapy I had about 200 blood tests, 40
general anaesthetics, 30 chest x-rays, 49 hospital admissions, 20
blood transfusions, three central IV lines, liver and kidney
failure, several raging infections and a shiny bald head. The
hospital became my second home. Medical terms became my second
language. My social life was planned around my chemotherapy
protocol.
Ever since I was a young kid, I always wondered what I would be
doing on the 9/9/99. As it turned out- I was in hospital having a
lumbar puncture to see if cancer cells had spread to my brain
stem.
CanTeen meant everything to me during my this time. In the real
world I was stared at, my bald head quite obvious for the world to
see. In the real world my friends either tip-toed around me or made
excuses to stay away. In the real world I was either ignored or
inundated with mindless questions. In the real world I was suddenly
way out of my comfort zone.
I loved the way that CanTeeners just accepted who I was. They
celebrated my wins and they supported me through the losses. A
quick nod could be translated into a thousand words. I could use
medical terms without feeling like an alien. Scars were worn with
pride and no matter how horrible my chemo had left me feeling- I
would always walk away from a CanTeen meeting feeling 10 feet tall
and ready to take on anything that cancer had to throw at me.
I was really lucky to get the chance to grow up through my
Teenage years in CanTeen. As I finished treatment, went to
university and then on to Teacher's College, my role within CanTeen
dramatically changed. It was really empowering to turn around and
support new patients like others had supported me. I could see
their transformation from a sick and scared shadow into a person
who was proud of what they were achieving and of the strength they
found to achieve it.
CanTeen also helped to define the person that I am today. It
helped me to prioritise my life and to decide what I wanted to do
with the unknown number of years I have in front of me. I know,
better than most people my age that life is too short to waste. Not
all of my CanTeen friends are here with me today, but each of them
have left a lasting legacy for me to live by. They have taught me
to grab onto life with both hands and to embrace every opportunity
that comes my way. After-all, we never know what could happen
tomorrow.
My advice to you is to get out, love life and celebrate all it
means to be alive.
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