Shelo ne-dah

My good friend Ms P joined me for lunch yesterday and told me a little secret, and you know by now that I cannot be trusted.


She told me that the book she has been working on for quite some time will be launched on Mother's Day. Ms P has been working for CanTeen on a book which aims to help young people cope with the realities of having a parent who is sick with cancer. The book is also published as a website.


The title of this post is a Hebrew phrase which we use in my family from time to time. Literally translated it means "that we shouldn't know". We use it when we talk about the hardships of life - illness and death being most prominent. At this point, I would use the phrase in this way : "Here is a very special resource which would be immensely helpful if you know a young person whose parent has cancer, shelo ne-dah." I guess it's like a little prayer that it would be nice if no-one knew such hardship.


My friend Ms P has an extraordinary gift for taking the hardships of life and spinning them into gold. I held her little book in my hands as if it was a newborn baby. She ensured that I kept it swaddled and supported its head while I cooed and gushed.


Then we had another glass of red and drank to life.