Reflection from Phil's teacher

This is an email that I was sent during the week from Phil's teacher Jenni. Kris x

As you know, I was Phil’s Year 6 Core Teacher at Chairo. He commenced Year 6 as a cheeky, up-beat young man. It was difficult to share his diagnosis with the class at the commencement of Term 2 and I think that as a class we drew closer to Phil through prayer.

I remember Phil making a visit to the class as he (and for memory your mum) were on their way to the Children’s Hospital for the initial surgery on his leg. Prior to his visit I had tried to explain to the other students the procedure that Phil was having undertaken, a difficult concept for 12 year olds to fathom. Anyway, when Phil arrived, we had both classes of Year 6 in the one room; Phil was open to questions and answered with a mixture of maturity and cheekiness.

Of course, the inevitable question was asked; ‘How do you feel about having your leg chopped off?’ I, for one, was stunned into silence as this mature response was made; ‘If God needs me to have a artificial leg for me to complete the work that he wants me to do; then I am happy to go ahead with the surgery.’ WOW! What a witness.

Through all my contact with Phil, that is what I will always remember; his desire to live for God, regardless of the circumstances, his passion for God’s creation (both natural environment and humankind alike) and his interest in all the people that he met. He remains my HERO, an example of who I am in Christ and how I should reflect God and His love in all that I think, say and do.

4 weeks

Also known as one month. Already a month? Or only a month?
I wonder if it ever starts to make sense?
I'm almost finished my degree, and last week I found out where I got a job for next year. It made me cry. I just wanted to share it with Phil. He loved to tease me about being a nurse (among other things!). I knew he was proud of me though.
We got our doorbell fixed the other day. For about the last 15 years it has made a strangled once-musical noise. The story goes that someone came to fix it, said he'd come back with a part, and never returned. Phil didn't get to hear the new doorbell.
These things are strange. My phone will beep, and I'll remind myself it's not Phil asking when I'll be home. I can't go chill out with him, or tell him that funny story I know he'd love. So instead I just cry, and miss him a lot.
Melinda

Phil's facebook.

We decided to deactivate Phil's facebook today.....  there is a new side panel that suggests people you haven't written to for a while.  Phil's face popped up suggesting that both Mum and I should reconnect with him.......  this is one of the album's Phil had up...a rafting trip with Ben...I like the annotations that he wrote to go with the pictures.  Kris x

Ok so heres the story. Ben and i decided we wanted to do something a bit different on a camping trip. So we built a raft. It was made of a ply board and pine box, parts of an old bed and truck inner tubes. We even had camp chairs mounted on it for a bit of extra comfiness.

We paddled around for the first day and discovered that it was incredibly stable. So we went back to shore grabbed the gas stove and some sausages and cooked dinner in the middle of a lake.

The next day we decided to mount the sail...which was a complete and utter disaster. Then we decided to try to paddle to a point that looked about ten kilometers away. It took about three and a half hours to get there. Then we walked back to the campsite to get the car to pick up the raft. It turned out that our "10" kilometer adventure was more like a much less impressive 2.

 

Today is Dad's birthday. Lots of yummy food, Phil would have enjoyed it.

I remember when Phil....

I changed my initial title for this blog...at first it was "Remembering Phil".....It's funny, well more strange I suppose cause when I typed the words "Remembering Phil..." it means that he's gone...and I still don't think I've quite realised that yet.

While we are finite humans when people are alive the potential to create memories and have pictures taken seems infinite.  But as soon as someone dies, that number doesn't grow anymore... in fact it feels like it shrinks as you forget things....

So I thought we would start a section on this blog called I remember when Phil, where we (that's you included), can post memories of him.....  just add a comment with your memory to the bottom of this post.  Feel free to write more than one....or to come back randomly and add a new one you remember!
If you have trouble posting comments, email them to phillingyouin@gmail.com and I'll put them up.

They don't need to be long.... 

Here are two that popped into my head:

-I remember when Phil was little and he couldn't say my name properly (Kristen is particularly difficult), he called me Kissn.

-I remember when Phil had an accident involving putting a spoon almost right through his tongue....which is why he called lollies wowwies for most of his primary school years.

Kris x

the zoo...

On Saturday some of us (Mum, Dad, Mel, Jenny, Renay and I) went to the Zoo.  The bears were really active and it reminded me of this day.

....17 days....

It been about 17 days and about 11 1/2 hours, in some ways that is a long time, it's over half a month, which is the same as more than two weeks, but it feels like no time has passed at all to me. 

Friends I have come to know on this journey have a blog they started for their son, Ben, who passed away from cancer last December.  It was their blog that motivated me to start this one. When I read back to the posts that were written by his parents and family last December the same words want to come out of my mouth, but that would be plagiarism.... :)  But reading their thoughts and feelings gives me some idea of where to start, what to do next, and also the fact thtat it won't sort itself out overnight....  It also gives me some insight into the brains of my parents (as most of the posts are written by Ben's mum and dad, Lindy and Chris).  Anyway they shared the link to this blog on their blogspot, so I wanted to do the same.

To go to their most recent posts... click here.
To have a look at December click here.
It's nice to have other people to share the journey with, meaning you, and also people who are as Lindy said "cancer companions", people who are on a similar journey to us. 

Kris x