Life Interrupted, Dr. Dua’s Survival Guide

Description

This book is a series of blogs which were written by my younger brother, Dr. Manu Dua. He wrote these as he was battling metastatic cancer and was in the last stages of his disease. He was 34 at the time. This book is a testament of how he was more than the thing that took him. Manu put up a phenomenal fight. Cancer doesn’t just affect the person who has it, but also the village around him/her. The suffering doesn’t end when the person passes, the family suffers still with the loss long after. Sometimes it’s hard to travel this arduous journey alone. Others who haven’t been through it, don’t necessarily understand the anguish even though they are supportive. I certainly didn’t until I lost Manu. It was hard to accept and find happiness again. Time heals, so I try to give myself that time. Time to let go of him but not his memories.

This book is also a dedication to the unwavering love, kindness, dedication and support of our parents. They are the pillars of our lives without whom Manu and I could not be who we are today.
Manu was my younger and only sibling. His death still feels unreal even though we, as a family, watched him suffer and fade away within 2 years of diagnosis. Manu started writing in September of 2020. In December that year, he and I talked about getting published. I asked him if he wanted to write a book on how he enjoyed driving because he was in control of the car unlike his destiny which he couldn’t control and tie it to his blogs. He said no, he had no anger, no loss of control due to cancer, he had come to terms. He wanted this to be a series of blogs as is to share his experience and hoped it would bring some comfort to another.

Manu had a gift of writing eloquently. Manu was very verbal and open about his journey. This book was in the works during his last days. I would have liked him to see his dream a reality but time was not on our side. And, even though he isn’t here today, I wanted to make this book come to light in his honor.

These blogs carry a lot of insight and may provide you some comfort if you or your loved one has to experience any loss. They are an insight to how we chase dreams for others, for trophies or materialistic things yet it may not bring us inner peace. How to be calm when the world falls around you. To acknowledge what and who truly matters in life. Find that precious reason and hold on to it. Life doesn’t come with guarantees, and things don’t go as planned, yet we muster the strength to carry on. Let go of fear and hold on to hope. After reading these pearls of Manu’s wisdom and resilience, I hope that you get a chance to reflect and maybe do some soul searching.

This is Manu’s legacy.