I have an envelope full of a friend’s story in my cupboard.
Jude died many years ago. She lost her eyes to cancer at about 18 months of age. She died when she was in her 50’s, when the cancer returned and attacked the rest of her body. She always wanted her story told. She wrote her first 40 years down, but publishers rejected it. I have this, along with notes from rest of her life, videos and photos. She lived a hectic life. Blindness was no barrier.
My life is also hectic and I don’t have the time to document hers.
But reading what you have written here, i feel a little comfort in knowing that maybe the importance was in her telling me the story before she died, her sense of being seen and heard for the life she lived.
Maybe one day I will have the time to write Jude’s story.
Oh I am so sorry to hear about your loss, but yes, absolutely that would have been so important to her, and as a friend you put her mind at rest that that had happened. What an amazing gift. And yes, who knows, maybe one day you will weave her story into something too. Thank you for sharing that.
She had a pretty amazing spirit! Backpacked around Europe in the 1970s/80s. Lived in London (travelled there on her own from Western Australia) and trained to be a physiotherapist which she worked as all her life. Was living in a farmhouse with an alcoholic husband and a 2yr old when I met her. Looking after a horse and cooking on a wood stove! Soon after that she was a single Mum for years, (as was I). She had the naughtiest of Guide Dogs, she loved reggae music, went on a drumming trip to Africa, fundraised for children in Africa with the same eye condition as she had, met and was a friend of Olivia Newton-John, winning an award for being an amazing woman!
Jude’s daughter had the same eye cancer, but kept one eye, worked as an amazing photographer. She was one year older than my daughter and devastatingly died a couple of years ago in her 30s after being ravaged by the bloody cancer.
I was always hesitant to write anything while Jude’s daughter was alive because Jude had some quite confronting moments in her life.
I have an envelope full of a friend’s story in my cupboard.
Jude died many years ago. She lost her eyes to cancer at about 18 months of age. She died when she was in her 50’s, when the cancer returned and attacked the rest of her body. She always wanted her story told. She wrote her first 40 years down, but publishers rejected it. I have this, along with notes from rest of her life, videos and photos. She lived a hectic life. Blindness was no barrier.
My life is also hectic and I don’t have the time to document hers.
But reading what you have written here, i feel a little comfort in knowing that maybe the importance was in her telling me the story before she died, her sense of being seen and heard for the life she lived.
Maybe one day I will have the time to write Jude’s story.
Oh I am so sorry to hear about your loss, but yes, absolutely that would have been so important to her, and as a friend you put her mind at rest that that had happened. What an amazing gift. And yes, who knows, maybe one day you will weave her story into something too. Thank you for sharing that.
She had a pretty amazing spirit! Backpacked around Europe in the 1970s/80s. Lived in London (travelled there on her own from Western Australia) and trained to be a physiotherapist which she worked as all her life. Was living in a farmhouse with an alcoholic husband and a 2yr old when I met her. Looking after a horse and cooking on a wood stove! Soon after that she was a single Mum for years, (as was I). She had the naughtiest of Guide Dogs, she loved reggae music, went on a drumming trip to Africa, fundraised for children in Africa with the same eye condition as she had, met and was a friend of Olivia Newton-John, winning an award for being an amazing woman!
Jude’s daughter had the same eye cancer, but kept one eye, worked as an amazing photographer. She was one year older than my daughter and devastatingly died a couple of years ago in her 30s after being ravaged by the bloody cancer.
I was always hesitant to write anything while Jude’s daughter was alive because Jude had some quite confronting moments in her life.
One day...
She sounds amazing x