By Ashley Chamberlain
Tue, May 13 2008 Sitting with my family during lunch last weekend, I couldn't help but to stop and take a minute to watch my nana. She sat at the far end of the restaurant's long rectangle table, eating and laughing. Her smile and happiness are very contagious, and people who know her are always fully aware of the fact that even if she is in a cranky mood, she never shows it. When she was diagnosed with breast cancer many years ago, it hit everyone who knows and loves her very hard. She is a strong, dedicated, and committed woman, to both her family and friends, and especially to her career and her work. Although she no longer owns the restaurant that my mom, aunt, and uncles grew up working in, she is still always on the move. More than that, she loves everyone and she takes care of everyone before ever thinking about herself. Through the many treatments, hospital visits, and even as the days get harder, she never complains. She doesn't get depressed or let her cancer get her down. Instead, she fights every single day to be on this earth, and her willpower is unbelievable. It's amazing what you can do when you really put your mind to it, and it's brave people like her who inspire others to continue on when things seem bad. Bravery comes in all different forms. Some of us have the courage to fight a devastating and heartbreaking disease. Others fight terrorists and crime. Many battle poverty and hunger. We all know people who face obstacles far worse than our own. Learning from the example they set, however, is the most important lesson they can teach us. At the same time we see bravery in those around us; we also learn that it's OK to fall apart. It's completely normal to be scared, nervous, and to fear situations in our lives, especially those that affect the people we love. No one expects us to live life with avoidance of anxious feelings and emotions. But, when it comes to a point where we need to be brave, either for others or for ourselves, we have to find it in our hearts to summon up our strength and be there for them the best we can. When Jarryd, a friend from school, first said that he was going to enter the Army ROTC at UNH, part of which requires him to enlist in the National Guard, two thoughts went through my mind. Initially, I was proud of him. It's brave to potentially risk your life to serve others and to become mentally and physically in shape to understand that risk. After thinking about it, his decision felt scary. Although I have always been proud of the military background in my family, and have always supported the troops as most Americans do, thinking of another close person in my life possibly entering Iraq is scary. Unfortunately, many American families still face that fear every single morning they wake up. If we look around us, we will find many people in our everyday lives are fighting bravely for something they believe in or for their own lives. At some point, each of us will find that we, too, will look in the mirror and realize that something has happened that forces us to be brave in the hardest times. It's a simple a reminder that on those "horrible" days, there are plenty of people who have it far worse, who are struggling to live against all odds, and who are doing everything and anything possible to survive. It's a reminder that through all of those trials and triumphs, they are surviving, they are living, and they are winning the fight, and we can too.
Ashley Chamberlain, a 2005 Pinkerton Academy graduate, is a junior at UNH. She is in her fourth year as a Derry News columnist and intern.
—
Copyright © 1999-2008 cnhi, inc.