#WARRIOR

The other day I watched my 78 year old, 6-stroke surviving, dementia-gaining, half-paralysed Nanna, get up and walk to the loo without asking for anyone's help. Earlier we had talked about her needing to exercise her legs to stop them from hurting, and somehow she remembered our talk and decided to be proactive. Against all the odds she's facing, even as grim as her outlook might be at times, she still has some fight in her. I watched her and thought "that's the Nan I remember. That's my warrior Nan".

When I was about 15, I did work experience with a photographer from a local newspaper. We had spent the morning taking photos of a store opening in some little nowhere town, and I was beginning to think I'd picked the wrong career experience. And then a call came over the radio and all of a sudden we were rushing off to the next town which was by the sea. We arrived at the fishing wharf and on the jetty were dozens of police and ambulance staff. A man had drowned. They were unable to save him. But for the 40min boat ride back to the wharf from the open ocean, a fisherman had given this drowned man CPR, without faltering once. That's an incredibly long time to give someone CPR. My mentor didn't allow me near the scene, she said it would be too damaging for me to see the dead man. So I sat in the car while she took the photos. When I was editing some of the pics later that day, I finally got a look at the fisherman, and the only thing that came to my mind was the word, "Warrior".

When a family friend passed away in the hospital last year, he had given very serious instructions about his family not being allowed to takeover his funeral arrangements. He was a wealthy man with a useless, money-hungry family, and so as soon as he passed, we knew that they were all going to try to get their claws in. My Mum was this man's best friend. She travelled the hour round trip every day to visit him in the hospital, she organized his care when he was out, she did his shopping, paid his bills, rubbed lotion on his feet. She did everything for him because she loved him. One of the nurses at the hospital knew what his family was like and so she rung my Mum as soon as he passed so we could get there first. His family still beat us there though. They pushed and pushed for things to be done their way, and they were quite arrogant and rude, but this nurse stood her ground and made sure my Mum was given the opportunity to say her goodbyes to her friend. The nurse didn't have to do that, she was getting a lot of flack but she took it on the chin. Later that day I told my Mum about how much of a warrior that nurse was. Regardless of what was thrown at her, she fought for what was fair and just and right. I wish I told her how much I was in awe of her. Warriors like that deserve awe.

A #WARRIOR is someone who refuses to give up even if the odds are stacked against them. They persevere through adversity. Fight for what's right. Continue trying for success regardless of how many times they might fail. And they motivate and inspire others rather than discriminate or spread hate. Warriors are the pinnacles of humanity. They're the peacemakers, the lifesavers, the advice-givers, the cheerleaders, the shoulders to cry on even when they're crying themselves. Warriors can be anyone at any time in any place. They can be mums, grandads, widows, teachers, doctors, peers, poets, princes or paupers. Warriors exist to make the world a better place and their incredibly positive outlook gives hope to us all. If you don't have a warrior in your life, be the warrior in your life. Be the warrior in other people's lives. The world needs more warriors. Be a warrior.

Until next time,
Ruby xx