EDITORIAL: Remembering bravery
Brown presentation exemplifies why we go pink in October
Speaking about a loved one who lost a fight with cancer can be painful. But for Damon Brown, sharing his wife’s story with students, faculty and staff on Tuesday evening showed Central Michigan University the power of love and acceptance.
Moments like these remind us why we recognize breast cancer awareness in October, and for better or for worse, why the entire nation goes pink for one month at the end of the year.
“My world stopped. The person I was meant to spend the rest of my life with is gone,” Brown said that night in between brief, but saddened pauses. “As much as I love my wife, as much as I love her now, if she is back she’s still in pain. That means she is still suffering.
“That is not a Keisha I want.”
It’s easy to forget why we set aside specific months to recognize people suffering from an ailment that we may never get – especially if the celebration is punctuated with the sale of T-shirts bearing catchy slogans. That’s why stories like Brown’s are so important. They remind us of the work we still have to do – in whatever way we can – to prevent another family from losing a beloved member to a disease that could be stopped with more research and funding behind it.
If we are ever to prevent another man from losing his wife, mother or daughter again, we must continue to be vigilant in raising awareness, no matter how commercialized or overexposed these causes become. Brown has helped the entire university realize that in one presentation.
In an effort to support those who have survived or battled for years against breast cancer, the Susan G. Komen foundation has inadvertently created a sense of fatigue in some people.
It’s easy to become desensitized by a cause that has been plastered on everything from coffee mugs to license plates. We can’t blame people for feeling put off, either, in October when instead of seeing storefront windows dressed in festive brown or orange, they see a smattering of vibrant pink.
On our pages, we too went completely pink, printing a two-section production on brightly hued newspaper stock. For those who have been deeply affected by breast cancer, the pink paper was embraced and applauded.
Through Brown and others like him, men and women so willing to revisit, we again realize the profound difference buying a T-shirt or wearing a single shade can make in the lives of women fighting breast cancer.
“There’s a poem out there about what cancer cannot do,” Brown said. “It cannot take your joy, it cannot steal your spirit; cancer can do so many wonderful things. It brings families together, it brings enemies together.
“I’m stronger because of cancer.”
And in turn, Damon, this university is stronger because you reminded us of your wife’s brave fight. Thank you for sharing Keisha’s story. Like you, it is one we will never forget.
