In 2006, British hairdresser Trevor Sorbie set up the charity MyNewHair, which supports people experiencing hair loss because of cancer or other illnesses. He was inspired to do so after styling a wig for his sister-in-law, who knew she would lose her hair during cancer treatment. Since then, Sorbie has taught more than 1,000 hairdressers to style wigs for cancer patients and others who have lost their hair for medical reasons.

In 2019, he appeared on the BBC's Desert Island Discs and shared this touching story of one woman for whom he had styled a wig:

I used to do some work in a hospice in Isha. And one day a nurse came up behind me and said, "Trevor, could you cut a wig for a lady downstairs. She's getting married." She said, "But it may not happen." I said, "Why?" She said, "Well, she may not live 'til 3:00." That took my breath away. I thought, I don't know if I can deal with this. So I went downstairs, knocked on the door. And there she was, lying in the bed, with this wedding dress on. There were streamers, balloons, cards around. You know something—I was in there for about 25 minutes, and those 25 minutes were some of the best 25 minutes of my whole career. We were laughing. We were joking. We were enjoying it. I wasn't in a room with a woman dying. I was in a room with a woman getting married. And I'll never forget that.

Hearing that story almost took my breath away. In the final moments of her life, this woman was focused, not on death, but on her marriage. She was making a memory that her spouse and perhaps family members could hold in their hearts after she was gone.

The story reminded me of my own simple wedding to Chris. Two days after I learned that I had ovarian cancer, I obtained a marriage licence and found an officiant. And four days after that, we wed on our back deck in the pouring rain, with our children as witnesses.

We do not always control what happens to us in life, but we do have a say in how we respond.