Chewing Pencils

My eldest son suffers from severe food allergies. Give him even a trace amount of any sort of nut, fish, egg or sesame and he’ll launch into an allergic reaction within seconds. We have to give an immediate injection of adrenalin and call an ambulance.

When it happens, it’s frightening. So we take every precaution we can, making sure we take all of our own food wherever we go. Family outings to any sort of restaurant aren’t an option for us.

Today was our annual trip to the Children’s Hospital in Melbourne for both of my sons to have their allergy testing. As usual, my youngest only has an issue with egg. The oldest still has all of his allergies - and they seem to be getting more severe.

That’s disappointing. It’s not what I had hoped for. But, as happens every year, on the way out of the hospital, we passed many children that were very, very sick. I don’t know what was wrong with them, but you could see the worry in the faces of their parents. The lines drawn by anxiousness and weariness are chiselled deep around their eyes. Some of these kids won’t live much longer. Others will live for years, but carry the burden of the conditions they have.

It’s very sobering, and makes me thankful that preparing our own food is the greatest inconvenience we have to face.

In Melbourne, and in other major cities around Australia, cartoonists play a role in easing the load these little people carry. Every so often, a group of cartoonists goes into the Children’s Hospital and they draw whatever it is the kids want them too. Sometimes they run classes, sometimes they do demonstrations, sometimes they do workshops - always they have fun.

I’ve never been able to participate, but as I walked past the Starlight Room (part of the cancer ward where the cartooning stuff happens) I said a little prayer of thanks for my fellow scribblers that venture in there and make the world a better place for these children.If that’s the only contribution our craft makes to the world, I reckon it’s worth it.

So, if you find yourself with a spare couple of hours each month, why not ask your local cartooning organisation whether they have any links with the local children’s ward, or see if you can start one yourself.