Monday, July 9, 2007

the new chapter of my life

People always says that anything happened to us (good or bad) should be taken up positively. When I was hit by the diagnosis, I realized a lot of new things and experiences came into my life.
First, I got to meet and being called by all of my old and even my childhood friends and they all came all over the country. Yes, they are good friends and keep telling me to stay stronger and tougher and I know that they all are caring.
Not only I met up my old friends, I got new friends. A couple of months after I knew my illness, I was invited by a volunteer to come for a small meeting with other CML patients. I got to know each one of them sceptically, since we really didn't know what was the purpose of the meeting then. But, having a common interest among us make everything seems easier for us to get close in a shortest time. The meeting went well and it actually the first step of forming the first ever CML support group in the country. It went so well that we were able to form the committee on that very first meeting and guess who was elected as the president/ chief or whatever? Just because I am a doctor, I got the job after being persuaded. Was it fair? Anyway I took the challenge. May be they were right, and I told them that being a person elected is a responsibility rather than a chance. If I loose my responsibility, they better get a new one.



Time flies, and the committee strengthened. After a few meet up, we successfully gather a first ever CML patients and their families in one big meeting. I never knew that the response was so well and we all felt so excited about it. People all around the country came and they expressed their thankful of having such meeting. We listened to educational talks, we mingled and chatted around and more importantly we started to develop family among us and we call it MAX FAMILY.





And in the next couples of months, we had organized another bigger event and the responses were tremendous. The ties among the "family' went stronger. We listened, participated, laughed and even cried during the meeting. We (the committee) never thought that we have gone this far in less than a year and felt that the responsibility for CML patients and their family are getting tougher and heavier in the future. Thanks to all my beloved committee members!!!. I always tell them and other CML patients that being the person elected had given me a whole great new experience in my life which I never thought of.




2 comments:

Unknown said...

I still remember the first day that we met in clinic. The only thing that I had in mind that day was "we must do our best to get treatment started fast”. It happened.

Dr R. is a great, dedicated and caring person; on the other hand, he is quite a “demanding” boss (when he is doing his president job). But we all know this is because he cares.

Dr R – we all love you. Remember, you are not alone because you have us.

My sincere THANK YOU to you for teaching me so much about life. Terima Kasih.

Mrs Grumble said...

Usually and very true that we never know what stage we can be till we have gone through all the journey..
. smallest unpredictable things make a big different unless we only never care to care.....
Our President is the best president ever met coz he always believed us...
Go go Mr President....