STT. After Years of Treatment, 10-Year-Old With Stage 4 Neuroblastoma Enters Critical Phase
He has spent many years in the profession.
Over four decades in television have taught him how to remain calm, even when faced with the most heartbreaking stories.
For 43 years, he sat behind the news desk, delivering headlines that shaped the lives of millions.
He reported on wars and natural disasters.
He talked about politics, scandals, victories, and losses.
He wrote about both joy and pain that cannot be named.
And after television, he continued writing for decades.
Because for him, words are the way to understand this world.
Because stories always have meaning.
But despite having witnessed countless tragedies, there was one story that broke his heart in a way he had never experienced before.
This isn’t a celebrity story.
It’s not a story that would shock the nation.
This is the story of a mother named Randa Ragland and her son, Jaxen.
There’s nothing good about this story.
There are no miracles.
There is only love, exhaustion, fear, and pain that no parent should have to endure.
Nevertheless, he still believed in the goodness of humanity.
And he hopes his community will lend a helping hand.
Randa Ragland lives in a public housing complex in Pinson, Alabama.
It’s not a safe or comfortable place.
It was simply where life led her.
She lives there with her children, trying to make the most of what she has each day.
Even without cancer, life was already a struggle.
The bill still arrived.
Every penny spent on food must be carefully accounted for.
Today’s strength must be borrowed from tomorrow.
Randa is more than just a mother.
She is a 24/7 caregiver.
Her 10-year-old son, Jaxen, has autism and is unable to speak.
The boy couldn’t speak when he was in pain.
The fear is indescribable.
And for many years, he battled cancer.
Not a few weeks.
Not a few months.
But it was many years.
Jaxen was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a rare and highly aggressive type of cancer in children.
That was the moment that divided life into “before” and “after”.
Before cancer.
And after cancer.
Hospitals have become a familiar sight.
Medical terminology has become everyday language.
Hope has become fragile.
Jaxen had to endure treatments that even adults would find difficult to endure.
He fought in silence.
And his mother fought for him with all her love.
The family car broke down.
And for a child with cancer, that can mean life or death.
There were times when they couldn’t get to the Children’s Hospital of Alabama.
It’s not because I don’t want to.
But poverty didn’t allow it.
When a journalist texted him to check on him, Randa’s reply left him speechless.
The cancer has returned.
This time, there’s no cure.
She knew her son’s time was running out.
She prayed for peace.
I pray that you will not be afraid.
I pray for the strength to say goodbye.
She didn’t know how to tell the other children.
I don’t know how a mother can say goodbye to her own child.
No one teaches that when it comes to parenting.
And despite the pain, she was grateful for the message.
Because it gave her a little hope that God was still listening.
This story doesn’t need magic.
It needs compassion.
And sometimes, love is the only thing left to give.
