Abraham Lincoln said it best when he said “And in the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years”. Harry Moseley, sadly died in his mothers arms last night at 11PM.
Four years ago Harry complained with a problem in his eye. A routine MRI scan was going to change his and his family’s life immeasurably. The routine MRI scan showed that Harry had an inoperable brain tumour. One cannot begin to understand the anguish and the pain that the family must have felt. At the age of 7 Harry was mid way through Primary school.
The reason that childhood is often considered the best time of your life is because for those few years life is at its very purest. For those few years you are completely free. There is no need to worry about the things that you worry about as an adult – exams, money, jobs, relationships and death. Life as a child is full of fun and full of dreams however when you become an adult the fun seems to stop and the dreams seem impossible to achieve, for they are laced with fear of failure. A child’s world is fresh and new and beautiful, full of wonder and excitement. It is our misfortune that for most of us that clear-eyed vision, that true instinct for what is beautiful and awe-inspiring, is dimmed and even lost before we reach adulthood.
Harry Moseley appeared to have his childhood taken away from him. At the age of 7 he was told he was going to die. At the age of 7 he was catapulted into an adult world. When he was 9, he lost his hair as a result of treatment he was receiving for his cancer. At the same time he met a man named Robert, who also tragically had an inoperable brain tumour. Harry wanted to help Robert, Harry wanted to make his friend better. So, despite being pumped with poison and being gravely ill – Harry started to make beaded bracelets for his friend. He would sell these in the hope he could make enough money to cure Robert. Robert was not cured, Robert died 6 weeks after Harry’s campaign began.
Any person is formed and moulded by their thoughts. Harry’s mind, as proven by his campaign to help Robert, was shaped by selfless thoughts. This mindset gave him joy when he spoke or when he acted. Joy followed him like a shadow that never left him.
Harry realised that whilst he could not help Robert he could prevent others from having to experience what he and his friend had experienced. So he began fundraising. He started a campaign – helpharryhelpothers (http://helpharryhelpothers.com). Harry was dealing with an ‘adult’ problem in a ‘child’ like way. By that I mean if you are a child then you don’t let the facts get in the way of your imagination. Harry was dealing with a crippling illness that made him tired, that made him weak. As an adult presented with these facts we would think that we should lay in bed, and we should rest. However Harry attended functions, he met the England football team who donated massive amounts for his charity, he became great friends with the ‘Dragons’ from Dragons Den who in turn have greatly helped Harry’s campaign. He joined Twitter and Facebook and promoted his charity – so much so that strangers up and down the country were doing great things, fun things, to raise money for this awesome campaign. Harry, who has had tens of operations, who has had two lots of chemotherapy, who has had radiotherapy, who has suffered the heartache of losing his friend has raised £500,000 for Brain Cancer Research.
Harry Moseley has now died but what a life he has lived. He has left a greater legacy in his short time than most of us can dream of in a lifetime. More importantly though, he has shown whilst you only live once, if you do it right, once is enough. His mum is with Harry, who is sleeping peacefully and he is ‘still wearing a smile’. It is amazing what you can learn from a child. I now know what Joseph Heller means when he says ‘When I grow up I want to be a little boy’.
Sleep well Harry.
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