My son is 7. He is quite sensitive and good at expressing his feelings. He can be quite fragile and sometimes has difficulty managing strong emotions.
We have been in regular contact with a friend who has terminal cancer. She is young and relates well with my son. She and her husband live close by and we pop in from time to time. Her cancer has progressed and she is quite ill now. She was taken into hospital for urgent treatment and has been receiving palliative care. It is heart breaking. She is a remarkably unpretentious genuine person and I have been in awe of how she has been continuing to live her life.
I have told my son she is ill. I am unsure how to manage things with him. His teacher who was also very young died of cancer last year and he found this so sad Tonight he was tearful and said he hoped the same thing would not happen to the friend as happened to his teacher. And he said he did not want that to happen. I am not quite sure how to help my son. People die and and I do not believe children need to be completely sheltered from what is part of life but my son is struggling with this and so am I. I would appreciate comments or ideas from anyone,