I live in Sydney and my brother, dad and mum are in New Delhi.
My brother called me late November and said that I should come home because dad is getting an operation- Never in my worst nightmare could I have thought it would be cancer.
I only found out the day I landed, 15th of December 2024, that he has been going through chemo. My whole world has changed. It has only been a few weeks and I was at home with my family until Sunday, 5th of January 2025 (Had to fly back because of work).
The worst part of it is that if it were upto me, I’d uproot my life and move back in a heartbeat but the doctors have strictly told my brother to not put my dad under any unnecessary stress as me living in Sydney has always been my dad’s biggest dream. Yes, I do want to honour his wishes but I also feel like I’m missing every single moment that I could have with him. These are precious. These won’t come back. My dad is that one person that I love the most in the world. I can’t even describe in words how much I love him.
His chemo finishes in May and I honestly can’t think of anything to do but to move back. I’m 26 years old and my brother is 27. All my grandparents lived until at least 80. My dad is only 66 years old. I know this might not sound like much but just the thought that he might never meet my children or the fact that they would never know how amazing and how selfless their grandad was, kills me. I don’t want to talk to any of my friends, a few of them know but no one would ever understand what I am going through and I hope and pray they never have to.
I feel it’s so unfair to my brother and my mom if I lay this on them because they are my dad’s primary caregivers and they are under so much stress as it is. I feel so defeated, everything feels so meaningless.
I was hoping to speak to someone going through a similar situation.
Thank you
