FAMILIES AN INSPIRATION

THE trade tensions between China and the US tipped international stock markets on their head this week. Greenie activists stopped traffic, again, in the Brisbane CBD because of government mining approvals.

A Queensland student is facing suspension for wearing the wrong socks to school. And the Brits are whingeing that Steve Smith’s ban for the sandpaper scandal should have been longer after he torn them apart in the opening Ashes cricket Test.

Real issues all of them, but they are eclipsed by the grief and heartbreak of two families thousands of kilometres apart.

Sydney dad Stephen Fowler is living a nightmare no father should be forced to endure. His 23-year-old son, Lucas, and his girlfriend, Chynna Deese, were both shot dead while on a remote road in Canada last month. The two men suspected of the murders were found dead themselves in remote bushland after an extensive manhunt.

At a memorial service in a foreign land at the weekend, Mr Fowler, a Chief Inspector for the NSW Police, said his son, known for his “beautiful” blond curls and big smile, was living “a life that many of us envied” and will “live on in our hearts”.

Closer to home, two Gold Coast parents are bravely facing mortality as their young daughter fights an aggressive form of brain cancer.

Two months ago, little Issabella Jones was given a year to live.

Her mother Renee wrote a bucket list of items for the five-year-old to tick off in her final days. They have included playing on the beach, going to the movies with Mum and going bowling with Dad Troy.

Issabella has had a ride on a Volunteer Marine Rescue Boat, been on a motorbike and played with the dolphins at Sea World. Yesterday she hopped into a monster truck. This weekend it is whale watching. Her story has captured a city’s heart.

Like the Fowlers, the strength of the Jones family is inspiring.

Sadly, there are thousands of other families in a similar position to them. Many live their adversity in private, away from the spotlight of sympathy. Their plight a test of character for loved ones and communities.

As it has done for countless other families, the Gold Coast has rallied to help ease the pain of the Jones family ever so slightly. Police officers, car show organisers, business bosses, bike clubs and volunteers have bandied together to put a smile on the face of innocent, sick children such as Issabella.

No parent should live to see their child suffer or die. Life is not supposed to work that way.

While we cannot feel or imagine the pain families such as the Fowlers or Joneses are going through, we need to be there for them, keep life in perspective and treasure the moments with our own loved ones.

Each day is yearned and appreciated. There is a lesson in that for us all.