Forward December 2015 | Page 27

SENIOR SCHOOL We are so thankful for the support of all the students and staff of School House and the Guildford Grammar School community. It was an inspiring event to be a part of and an amazing team to ride with. Michelle Ainsworth Mother of Mitchell Ainsworth From Mitchell I’m 17 years old. I would like to share with you my story. Looking back to the early stages of 2014, I was just a fairly regular teenage guy, and I certainly had the mindset to match it, I thought I was untouchable, and the biggest concern I had in my life was an upcoming maths test, how naive was I? This story is about how a small painful lump changed my life forever. Cancer was possibly the one illness I never imagined I would have at age 16. After numerous tests, it was confirmed that the painful lump was an osteosarcoma on my left femur, which would require treatment in the form of a gruelling 18 rounds of chemotherapy along with limb salvage surgery to remove 20cm of bone, including my knee. The process was long and tough and it threatened my life, but thankfully with the brilliant team I had treating and supporting me, I was one of the lucky ones to become a survivor! I urge all of you to get behind the fight to find a cure. This journey may have taught me many things, but one thing of significance that I have learned relates to the word hate, the word Mum was always telling me not to use because it was such a strong word. But when something steals your happiness, your knee and surrounding muscles, forces you to sit idly by while the sporting team you can never be a part of again wins those games, and puts you through a year of hell, I think it’s alright to say you hate Sarcomas. Sarcomas steal lives, be it literally or figuratively. This is something worth fighting against, in any way you can! Mitchell Ainsworth (12Sc) 27