So Your Kid Beat Cancer...Now What?

Ever plan a really awesome event or vacation and when it’s over you can’t quite figure out what to do with yourself? That’s kind of how things have been in the Callahan house lately. We just went through the most crazy 6 months, and now that it's over, there’s literally an unbelievable feeling going in our lives right now. 

There’s the part of you when you meet someone new, and they have no idea what just happened to our family, and As you’re kind of relieved. There are the moments when you're talking to someone an opportunity arises for you to share the mic drop that your 18 month old just beat cancer and you feel a sense of pride that is indescribable. Either way, it’s easy to say that our lives have changed a whole lot since Jack turned one. Our family will never be the same. And I say that in the best way possible. 

When Jack was going through treatment we began to realize how little things didn’t matter anymore. Not sweating the small stuff kind of became our unspoken mantra. Now that it’s all over, it’s safe to say we are still adopting that way of thinking. Not that we don’t lose our cool from time to time or get anxious, but we don’t let things that we can’t control have the same effect on us as they would have a year ago. Additionally, we kind of laugh when we hear people complaining about things that are trivial. Not that everyone’s problems are not important, but there’s something freeing knowing you can handle life’s small problems with ease because you just watched your baby knockout cancer. It’s a little like the saying “first world problems” but instead in our head we say “cancer clueless problems.” 

In the same way that the little things don’t stress us out any more, they also don’t scare us. If you told me a year ago that I’d be writing a blog or thinking people care what I have to say, I would definitely call you crazy. Moreover, I can tell you right now if someone told me I’d speaking at a council meeting a year ago I would absolutely laugh in their face. But when you see a tiny baby fight like hell to beat cancer, a room full of neighbors doesn’t seem so scary. When you see your kid almost die and turn around and be bigger, stronger, and happier than ever, you want to fight like hell to keep him that way and you’re not afraid of who you have to go up against. The fact is, we all have something to say, and we can’t be scared to say it because life truly can change tomorrow and we can’t look back and regret what we didn’t do or were too scared to say. 

So Jack beat cancer, now what? Well the idea for Jack Attack Gives Back started just like this blog. One night when I couldn’t sleep I got to thinking about all the people who helped to save Jack - the people who donated money or time, the people who reached out with kind words or prayers, the strangers who made things for him in the hospital. All those people had such an impact on our lives and I wanted to do something the say thanks but in our own way. So I took out the phone and started typing. I typed a whole plan and when I woke up the next morning, I shared it with Danny. By his reaction, I knew we were onto something. The rest really is history. Since that day we’ve been making lists and ideas of what we could do. We’ve helped others in Jack’s name and are so happy for every person who is also giving back and making the world a better place. 

Basically it boils down to this: when you don’t know what to do, whether it’s because you’re overwhelmed, overjoyed, or just over it. DO GOOD. Doing good for others changes lives. Make someone smile. Do something that it easy or that takes everything you’ve got. Pay it forward. Donate to charity, donate blood, just donate. Because you won’t need those things when you’re gone. Life is short and fragile. So we need to care for each other while we are here. We need to be inspired by the everyday heroes - those who help others, who are kind, who fight for what is right, and who inspire us to be better people. I know who my heroes are because I surround myself with them everyday. But I bet it’s no secret, my favorite one is the little fuzzy haired boy who has stolen my heart and the hearts of so many others along the way.