Determined to live life to the full
Pacific travels and a big party are planned despite devastating cancer diagnosis for O¯ punake midwife
Astage four cancer diagnosis is not stopping a Taranaki woman from living her life to the fullest. In fact, says Sharon Robinson, it is making her even more focused than ever on doing the things that bring her joy with the people she loves.
“I told my daughter, Sarah, that I am only going to do the things that make me happy and let go of the rest. She laughed and said Mom, when did you ever not do that? And I said, well I’m warning you, I’m going to turn it up a notch or two.”
Turning it up a notch for Sharon means everything from travelling to Samoa and Tonga to throwing a party next door to her current home in O¯ punake.
Sharon previously served the Stratford community as a midwife for 12 years and she says the party, planned for Easter Saturday, is a way to bring together some of the people she has cared for over the years, including those in Stratford. Over the course of her career, Sharon has worked in multiple places around New Zealand as well as abroad.
“When some of the families I took care of in Auckland heard the news, they said they wanted to come down to spend some time with me over the Easter weekend. It grew from there. I thought, why not host a party so some of my Taranaki families could join us. It will be an opportunity to share stories, have some fun and get to know each other. It’s a way to come together. So, on the Saturday there will be some kid’s games, an informal talent show, some face painting and hopefully some live music and dancing.”
All are welcome, and ideally people will being a plate to share on the day, she says.
A friend in Opunake ¯ has said she will arrange for the community there to help provide food for the out-oftown guests for the weekend, something Sharon says is really touching.
“The outpourings of kindness has been incredible.”
She will be back in time for her party, although Sharon is currently travelling in the South Pacific. She’s in Samoa with her husband, Dave Rohe, on a trip that was planned before they were told in late January of her stage four diagnosis.
“I wasn’t going to change my plans. I want to continue to live my life and be me.”
Whether in Samoa or Opunake, ¯ there is one constant for Sharon: her husband, Dave.
“Wherever I have been in the world, I have always been at home as long as I have been with him.”
The stage 4 cancer diagnosis was unexpected, says Sharon.
“I had no symptoms. I was having a scan for something else when they saw the cancer.”
She’s been told by her specialist that the cancer found in her bones came from the breast cancer she had a mastectomy for in 2015.
“I have some aches and pains, but nothing in my spine, pelvis and the part of my skull where the scans have shown there is cancer.”
In Samoa, as well as swimming with turtles, Sharon and Dave are enjoying spending time with a Slovenian friend they met when he was working in Stratford 13 years ago as an au pair.
“He is now married and has two children of his own and they invited us to join them for a holiday in Samoa.”
After Samoa, Sharon is headed to Tonga to meet up with a childhood friend from when she lived there from 1970-73. Sharon won’t just be hanging out on the beach while in Tonga, however, as her passion for midwifery continues to drive her.
“I know, from having lived in Tonga as a child and then visiting several times as an adult, how limited the resources there are. So I want to see how I can help. I will be talking with some midwifery officials there to see what they say they need and then I will see what I can do.”
While Sharon will be working on ways to support other midwives, she decided to put her own practice on pause at least for now.
“With the diagnosis, I recognised that I was feeling distracted. In midwifery there is a lot at stake. We carry a lot of responsibility. As soon as I was told, I started calling other midwives to see who was available to take over the care of my women. I was able to talk with each woman and help make sure they ended up with a midwife that felt right for them. It was really important for me to be able to do that.”
While Sharon doesn’t know what the future holds, she knows how she is going to approach it.
“If there’s one thing I want to share, it’s this: don’t wait until you get told you have stage 4 cancer to fully enjoy your life. Do it now. Spend time with the people you love. Go to Samoa. Sit still and enjoy feeling the breeze. Experience all of the joy available to you, now.”