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Bodhi drops in to tell the team his good news
There was a special visitor to the Cooper Associates County Ground this week.
A young Somerset fan came to see the team to let them know his good news.
Many Somerset supporters will remember Bodhi, who was something of a lucky charm as the Club lifted the Vitality Blast trophy in 2023.
We first met Bodhi at Musgrove Park Hospital’s Children’s Ward two years ago when we launched our T20 shirt. The five-year-old was receiving treatment for T cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.
Since that day, Bodhi has been a regular visitor the Somerset matches, has kept in touch with several of the players and even joined in the celebrations when Somerset lifted the Vitality Blast trophy at Edgbaston.
Bodhi has now completed his treatment and rung the hospital bell.
He visited the first team this week to share his good news.
We spoke to Bodhi’s mum, Alice to find out more.
“At the end of November Bodhi finished all of his chemotherapy treatment and as a result of that he rang the bell,” she explained. “That indicates that you’ve finished and are moving on to the next stage of your life. There are still some ongoing medical things that we need to be doing like antibiotics at the weekends because he’s still immunocompromised and he still has to have monthly checkups, but we’ve come out the other side. As things stand today all is well and long may that continue.
“He’s now getting back to normal life. He’s back at school every day and that’s having a really positive impact on him. He’s getting involved in extracurricular activities, he’s learning to play instruments, he’s swimming and just doing all those normal things that seven-year-olds do.
“He’s not had the opportunity to experience some of the normal things that five- to seven-year-olds take for granted like play dates with friends and that sort of thing, so we’re ramming a lot of that in now! For example, he’d never been to a soft play centre, so we went to one for the first time last week and it was really lovely to see him doing something like that.
“We’re playing catch up now and trying to give him those opportunities but still being mindful that he can still get very tired. That’s only to be expected though because he’s had two years of intense treatment, and his little body has endured a lot from the chemotherapies. Although he gets tired, he still throws himself into everything but that’s just who he is. Throughout the whole of his treatment, he never let anything stop him or hold him back.”
How did it feel when he rang the bell?
“Ringing the bell was incredibly overwhelming. It’s a very emotional experience because throughout the treatment you can’t really think about getting to that point. You don’t let yourself picture it happening. I don’t think I can come up with the words to describe what it felt like to be standing there and taking in the fact that we had got to the end of this journey as a family. It’s been Bodhi’s fight, but we’ve all been there as a part of it.
“It was so overwhelming, and we are just so happy and grateful that we were able to do it. There are lots of families who aren’t as fortunate, and we were certainly thinking about them at that point. We are just so grateful that we’ve been able to make it out the other side and have a life to look forward to.”
What has it meant to the family to have had the support of Somerset CCC?
“The support from the Club has been brilliant. When you’re in hospital and you have to miss out on all the normal childhood experiences, it can have a significant effect on a child’s morale and mental health, so to even have the boost of people just thinking about you and providing you with opportunities to feel special has been great.
“I think he feels a little bit like he’s famous, which has had such a positive effect on him and his emotional wellbeing. That’s been such a big part of the recovery process and it’s been lovely for us to feel like a part of something. Having things to look forward to, like coming to the cricket or meeting with the players behind the scenes has been so important. It’s made him feel special and it’s been such a boost.
“His friends have seen him on tv, and they talk to him about it and it’s something that he can share with other people. That’s also been good for the wider family who haven’t been able to see him as much as they would have liked because of restrictions and isolations.”
Have the family been surprised by the amount of support that they’ve received?
“It’s been unbelievable. It’s been nothing short of astonishing. Total strangers have reached out via social media and donated to things that we’ve been raising funds for. People have been cheering us on and just knowing that the support is out there, and that people just want the best for Bodhi has really restored our faith in humanity. There are so many good people out there who want the best for a child that they don’t even know.”
What is next for Bodhi?
“We’re going to Florida in the summer. We’re very lucky to be working with a charity who put together special holidays for children who have been in Bodhi’s position to give them once in a lifetime experiences. Then we’re looking forward to something that resembles normality. Things like going to school, coming home and having dinner, not having hospital visits or intrusive medical procedures. We’re just looking forward to being a normal family and spending some time together.”
