“Brushing Mom’s Hair” is a recently published poetic peek into the daily thoughts of a teenage girl whose mother has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Written by Andrea Cheng, the book comes from a very personal place. I recently had the pleasure of exchanging information with Andrea and she was very kind to answer my questions.
I knew that this book would be meaningful when I read that Andrea had waited to publish it at the request of her daughter. The poems were written in a voice she felt would represent her youngest daughter who was nearly 15 when Andrea was diagnosed with breast cancer. The book is intended for ages 11 and up but not necessarily just the obvious audience. Andrea stated, “I see it as a book for all kids, not just those touched by cancer in their families. I feel like it might be even more important for the ‘other’ kids who are not going through this sort of situation at the moment to learn what their friends may be experiencing”.
She was very candid in expressing how her diagnosis had affected each of her children, all teens at the time, differently. Even her oldest, who was in college, struggled with the implications of the cancer. She was also very honest in responding to my question of how she recalled talking to her children about her situation; “The whole time feels blurry. I felt sick and also very tired a lot of the time. I remember laying on the couch and wishing I could help the kids but not knowing how and then dozing off”.
The narrative is candid and covers the common physical consequences of breast cancer as well as the emotional impact on a teenager who is observing all of this. One of the loveliest comments that Andrea Cheng made was “I guess I want to give the kids (and the world) the message that there are lots of ways to be fine.” That really struck me as there are a number of choices that an individual can make to change their appearance during and after treatment: reconstruction, prosthetics and wigs, to name just a few. It is truly a message of strength to “be fine” in one’s own body when that body has been so mightily defended.
More than five years later, Andrea says that her children have incorporated the experience of her illness into the story of their teenage years. Her comments about her children were very reassuring to me and will be to other parents as well. She says that her children respect the fragile gift of life but also have become stronger themselves and more aware of what a person might be capable of surviving.
Please visit www.andreacheng.com for more information on this and the author’s other works.
To visit the Amazon listing for “Brushing Mom’s Hair” by Andrea Cheng, please click here.