Update on Ryderman

Sorry for the absence everyone!  Things have been a bit loopy here.  I am organizing a fundraiser for Ryder's road to recovery fund that is this Thursday night, and then a week after, we head out on a 3 month journey in search of Volcanoes!  All good though, I have been overwhelmed by the kindness and generosity of the Whistler community and my friends.

On Ryder's last MRI the results showed that the cancer was gone from his spine except for a little dot, and that the brain cancer was markedly reduced.  Ryder is walking, learning to talk again, and growing stronger every day.  His Mom Nicole says that they are so focused on recovery from the damage done to the brain now and are struggling to find good resources for Ryder.  It will be a long road, but every day with him is a blessing.  

Last weekend Harrison and I had the privilege of having 2 play dates with Ryder!  Ry would throw the ball, and H would run and get it and bring it back to him.  H would leap off the bed, and Ry would laugh and then hold out his arms to do the same.  Ryder would say "Hide" and H would follow him to his hiding spot.  Nicole was so delighted with the interaction which she said was new.

As a mother, it was joyous and heartbreaking.  I was so in awe of Nicole and Jimi's spirit and positive energy despite their exhaustion.  I vow to not cry when I am with them because every day and every minute with Ryder is and should be a celebration but there was one second where I was so overcome with emotion, and funnily enough, it was about my own son.  

Ryder's legs had given out while he was standing and he clipped his chin on the pool table.  His Mom carried him over to the couch and was cuddling him while he cried.  Harrison walked over and said:

"Scooch over there so I can come up"  he then gave Ryder a little stroke on his head (which Harrison stated was cool and he wanted to shave his hair like Ryder) and said:

"It's o.k Ryder, I fall down too. You're o.k friend.  You are getting stronger and stronger every day" then just sat there with him till he felt better.

I have never been more proud of my son.  His character and kindness took my breath away.  

I wanted to share yesterday's post from Jimi, Ryder's father with you......

Since the last post Ryder has just been improving day by day. We were due to start the next round on the 21st but his counts weren't where the doc wanted them to be so they gave him an extra week to recover. So we've been trying to keep Ryder busy and working on getting him nice and strong before the next round begins.

Something happened today that hasn't happened in a while.

I was working the shop for the first time in forever when around 4pm my family turned up. Nic with Ryder walked in and I was given a huge big smile from Ryder when he saw me, it reminded me of a time that seems so long ago which I might have taken for granted and it gave me such a unbelievable surge of energy I was overwhelmed.

Never again will that happen, never again will a simple smile go unappreciated, and never again will I forget the power of a smile.


So tomorrow go out and smile at someone for no reason, and feel the energy it brings knowing you might just have put a smile on someone else's day. Then think about Ryder and know he is feeling that energy right with you, and every bit of energy is getting him better and better.


'Every Day In Every Way Ryder IS Getting Better And Better'