Welcome to 2023! I can believe that it is October again already!?!

So, this is my 7th year entering the Great Cycle challenge so I thought I would reflect on a 7th Birthday experience.

Over the 11 years of her tumour journey, Joss has taken so much in her stride. She’s rolled with near constant changes, appointments, missed events, all with such casual grace.

In the week of her 7th birthday we travelled to Sydney twice. Once for an ophthalmology appointment, and once for an MRI. Outside of the 12 hours of car journeys and the endless time spent in waiting rooms, she managed to complete a Taekwondo belt grading and had a sleepover with her cousin, a family Birthday dinner and then a Saturday Birthday party with friends.

The trick in this journey is to keep the joy outweighing the sadness.

Fast forward to today, Joss is a school leader and flying towards high school. Loved by her peers and teachers for her empathy and caring nature it is easy to forget that after 1000’s of appointments, weekly blood tests, treatments, hospital stays and multiple surgeries, she has life experience that some people 5 times her age have never experienced. Try and picture a hospital ward with experienced paediatric oncologist’s struggling to insert a cannula and being told by an 11 year old with powerful optimism and a brave smile, “don’t worry, I know you are trying your best.”

The teams that support her are the caring, dedicated, hard-working, and often under-recognised heroes of our world. The work they do is done always with the weight of multiple families hopes at every turn. I would like to dedicate this year’s riding to the Doctors, Nurses and support people (I’m looking at you Starlight's). Thank you.