Gratitude (we are grateful for all we have)
Breast Cancer And Our New Heartfelt Homes Charity Venture.
They say that Things Happen for a Reason and I totally believe that.
Belinda Westblade and I began sharing our renovation, property and home décor passion online for a while on Social media in 2012/13, but were so busy selling, moving, buying and renovating again (it’s what we actually do continuously!) and after a disastrous homewares website design experience that almost broke us, we were feeling pretty down. Flat, tired and over it. So we put our oohm venture aside, while we continued on with life as usual.
Then in May 2014 I was diagnosed with breast cancer in both breasts, underwent a few surgeries and radiotherapy treatment. What that did, was stop me for a while. Stop me from being so physically active around the big old mansion that we had bought to renovate, where everywhere I looked there was something to do. It made me sit still and I had time to contemplate what was really important. Really important.
It was during this treatment time that I had a burst of enthusiasm (ironic considering I was so tired) and I took to social media and our numbers of oohm followers increased by hundreds a day. Belinda W worked with another web designer to get our oohm site live and we both began writing blogs. From then, our passion became a business giving it all of our energy we have never looked back.
The marketing manager from the OnTheHouse group had been watching us online for a while and approached us to write for them. They asked us if we had any How to’s and DIY tips for their reader and investor groups, which was an easy thing for us to come up with, considering the amount of DIYing we had done all of our lives!
So, back to the ‘things happen for a reason’….
Did I deserve or expect breast cancer?
NO.
Did it result in presenting an opportunity for Belinda W and I?
I believe that it did. Strangely, our first business meeting with OnTheHouse group was the day after my last radiography treatment and I was feeling really burnt and tired, but so flattered and grateful for the opportunity to share information ‘giving back’ to a company that had served so well in our search for good properties over many years.
Did I feel sorry for myself when I was diagnosed?
No. I just felt that I had joined thousands of other women who were bravely dealing with the same issues as me (and many with more uncertain outcomes) and I just had to get on with it.
Which brings me to the next ‘things happen for a reason’ point…..
Every day for a month, I turned up to the Cancer Care Unit at Kogarah for treatment. Mum and Dad would come with me – yes, I’m 51 years old and quite capable of getting there by myself AND the staff smiled at us arriving together every day….super daggy but feeling the love. Day after day, the 3 of us would chat to people in the waiting room, some with no hair, with burned patches on their skin, some looking well and others looking ill.
From my home, the return trip to and from treatment was 3 hours. I considered that to be an inconvenience, but was brought to reality when I heard stories from others in that waiting room who didn’t live near the hospital. Some travelled for hours back and forth every day, for most of the day. Some had left family and were staying alone in accommodation near the hospital, some had taken months off work and had to find money for their accommodation as well as continue to support the family they had left behind.
I saw first-hand how illness and treatment impacted families for months, physically, emotionally and financially.
Belinda Westblade had also experienced the effects illness can have on a family, with Mr W having cancer removed and treated in 2010. Living 150kms from the hospital meant Belinda W had to pay for accommodation to be near her husband or had to travel over 300kms a day to be with him. When under stress emotionally the last thing needed is to have financial and physical pressures as well.
For Belinda W and I, our individual property companies are our major source of income and equity. Though our cash flow fluctuates madly depending upon whether we have just bought, sold or are putting every cent we have into renovating (my Accountant just shakes her head when she knows we are going through another ‘tighten the belts’ phase) the fact is WE HAVE ENOUGH. ……And, we are grateful for our health, marriage, kids and loving families and friends.
We have discussed many times about what generating more income would mean for us and what it would allow us to do and have always wanted to give to others in need.
As always, I was looking at home decor online and the site Heartfelt Homes popped up (did it happen for a reason?). I saw that it was a non-profit organisation based closed to Belinda in north coastal NSW and their mission resonated with me immediately. So, Belinda met the director Caroline Meehan for coffee and I spoke to her at length over the phone. In short, Heartfelt Homes financials are in order, they work really hard (and for nothing). Their dreams are big, they have the best of intentions and they really need some help. We are happy to support them and are hoping that you will do the same – Belinda Smith
Heartfelt Homes – “Having a loved one in hospital is one of the hardest things a family can go through. If the hospital is a long way from home then it makes a difficult situation almost unbearable.
Each year hundreds of Australian families are torn apart as a loved one is admitted to hospital far from home.
Heartfelt Homes provides short term accommodation near major hospitals, keeping families together in their darkest hours”
http://www.heartfelthomes.org.au/
* Pop your details into our optin-box to make sure that you don’t miss a thing *