Mikaela Figgis

Like many families, cancer has always been close to ours. My mum was only two years old when she lost her own mum to breast cancer. Now that I have small children, including one the same age, I can’t imagine the heartbreak of knowing you won’t be there to watch them grow up, or that your little one won’t remember how fiercely you loved them and how hard you would have fought to stay.

My mum has since faced breast cancer herself, but thanks to decades of research and better treatments, her experience and her outcome were very different. She’s thriving, healthy, loving life with her grandchildren, and I’m so grateful for that progress and the time we’ve gained together.

But very sadly, last year we lost our dear friend Kieran. There’s a strong irony in doing Dry July for him because he was one of my most reliable drinking partners at the footy, at Meredith, at the beach house, and pretty much anywhere in between. It’s been exactly a year since we said goodbye, and it feels right to do something in his honour.

Kieran showed me what strength really looks like. His resilience and courage were extraordinary, and if I ever have to face something like that, I hope I have even half of what he had. So this year I’m going dry for a month for Kieran, a small challenge compared to the ones he took on, and I’ll be thinking of him with every sip of a non-alcoholic G&T.

If raising funds through Dry July can help support even one more person, one more family, or one more service making a difference in cancer care, then it’s worth it.

And if you feel like buying me a Golden Ticket so I can have a night off, please do. Otherwise I’ll be having a drink for Kieran at the footy in August.