It all began in July 2000 when I was 11 years old. I remember walking in the front door after school and seeing my dad crying. I was completely shocked, as I had never seen him cry before. He then sat me down and explained to me that he had a number of brain tumors. At first this didn’t mean much to me as I was too young to understand the extent of his illness, but as time went on I slowly began to understand.

As time passed dad became quite sick, and was soon transferred to a hospice. It was around this time that my sister informed me of a support organisation for teenagers whose parents had cancer. Having contacted our local office in Adelaide we were informed that I was too young to join. However due to the extent of dad’s cancer I was exempted from this.

"It was the first time I had ever discovered that there were so many others"

in similar situations to myself. I formed a number of strong friendships, which have gone from strength to strength over the years.

Sadly a week after that, dad passed away after putting up a strong fight for just over 6 months. It took me a while to come to terms with dad’s death; however the support given to me from my friends and family helped me tremendously.

For the following months I attended a number of different events through the support organisation, which helped me get my life back on track. But just as my life seemed to be getting back to normal again, mum was diagnosed with an extremely aggressive form of breast cancer, just 6 months after dad had died. Once again my family and I would have to endure another long battle. As the months went by I was forced to watch mum endure a lot of suffering.

"This brought back numerous memories"

of dad’s illness. At one stage mum became so sick that she was given just days to live. It was at this time, at the age of 12, that I began thinking of life without parents. This scared me a lot. However mum’s grit and determination enabled her to hang on, and she slowly regained her strength and health.

As mum’s health continued to improve, she re-married and once again I had a father-figure in my life. Perhaps I could now live a ‘normal’ life, with simple problems, like that of my school mates.

Unfortunately this was not to be the case. My step-dad was diagnosed with an advanced form of prostate cancer, which had spread through into his bones. Over the following 15 months, I watched a perfectly healthy man go through extreme amounts of suffering. The pain that he endured was so intense that he would often be screaming. This really took its toll on me and there were a number of times I wanted just to give up.

However I would then think of the many friendships I had made with cancer patients in the past, who had sadly lost their battles with cancer at a young age.

"They too had dreams, but they were never given the opportunity to achieve them"

The thought of these friends really encouraged me to keep on going (and still does, for that matter) as I realised that I was fortunate enough to have a choice. Sadly my step-dad lost his fight with cancer and passed away half way through my year 12.

For the months following I put an enormous amount of effort into my studies, trying to put the whole cancer thing behind me. I think I slowly began to get on top of everything. I started going out more, my school grades improved quite convincingly and I was well on track to achieve the tertiary entrance score that I was aiming for.

In fact, I can even recall one of my best friends commenting on the fact that my life was finally getting back on track. However within days of her making this comment, and just one week before my final year 12 exams, mum was diagnosed with a recurrence of her breast cancer. This time in her ribs and spine.

"Since this diagnosis, the cancer has spread throughout most parts of her body and continues to spread"

Although mum is putting up an extremely strong fight, the reality is that she will eventually die from the cancer. It could be years, it could be months or it could even be days. We just don’t know. But what I do know is that each moment I spend with her will be memorable and will be full of joy.

Joining a support organisation helped me immensely, and still does. It has enabled me to live a ‘close to’ normal life, while forming a number of strong friendships, which will no doubt last a lifetime. I have also learned a number of valuable skills in life, such as team leadership, speaking in front of large crowds and being able to relate to people of all ages.

"I have always had a passion for aviation"

throughout my life, and in particular flight. I am currently studying aviation at a tertiary level, because I've realised that in life we should never take anything for granted – not even the smallest of things. This encourages me to live my life to the fullest.

I hope one day to form a foundation, similar to the Make a Wish Foundation, and perhaps in conjunction with CanTeen, that helps the families of those facing the prospect of terminal cancer. Giving them one last chance to get away for a while, as a family, and make some valuable memories that will last a lifetime.