“”The floor disappeared under my feet””
“Johan Ripås has written a book about when the 3-year-old son had leukemia.”
“This is a kulturartikel which is a part of Aftonbladet’s opinionsjournalistik.”
“Life is never more than a moment away from just about everything can change.”
“– When I got to know that our three-year-old son had cancer vanished the floor under my feet, ” says Johan Ripås, which has just come out with a book about what happened.”
“In the ”When the sky falls down,” he portrays how the whole of existence came tumbling down in just a few seconds.”
“– my family and I lived in Johannesburg, where I was a correspondent for Swedish Television. I had for some time had a nasty feeling that something was wrong with my youngest son. He was pale and indolent and dry on the lips. “
“Johan Ripås went in with him to the local hospital. “
” A doctor took blood tests and came back later in the evening. She delivered the message calmly and without drama: ”Your son has leukemia”. “
“For Johan Ripås it meant death.”
“– I knew nothing about leukemia. “
“the Boy needed a blood transfusion and it was a matter of minutes.”
“No time for reflection””
” We found ourselves in Africa, and I was afraid he would be infected by hiv or any other viruses or diseases. But there was no time for reflection. It was a night of pain for our son. They stack him all the time and I could not protect him. It was not possible to lie. The only thing I could do was to be as close as possible. It was a terrible thing.”
“As a foreign correspondent, Johan Ripås been taught in how to behave if you end up in trauma.”
“– You should document the news feed for your brain to understand what’s happening. So I started writing down in the cell phone all about was around me. It got longer and longer and longer texts. I have noticed that in crisis situations I tend to be a hands-on person, as a way to take command of the situation.”
“It was important to get home son to Sweden and barncancerkliniken at the Karolinska hospital. Everything else was insignificant.”
“On the ten days allowed the family to sell their car and their furniture, pack up the rest of the home, negotiate the repatriation by air of an attending nurse, speak with a doctor at the Karolinska, rent a flat in Stockholm, to take his two older children out of school and say goodbye to all the friends in Johannesburg.”
” It was a storm surge of tears and hugs, a fireworks display of compassion. My son got a mountain of dinosaurs, his favourite animal. “
“”that is to come from the middle ages””
“At Arlanda airport, waited for an ambulance which took the son to the Karolinska hospital. “
“– It felt almost like coming from middle ages right into a commercial. Astrid Lindgren’s barncanceravdelning is located on the twelfth floor of the new Karolinska. From the large picture window is visible, Stockholm, far below. Everything was so orderly.”
“Johan Ripås says that he is impressed by the doctors and the care his son receives.”
” I have read the posts in the newspapers that talk about samhällskollaps. But it is, of course, absurd. Come with me to Africa, to the Congo so you will be able to see on the samhällskollaps!”
“got to know other dads”
“During the time that has passed he has come to know other ”cancerpappor” and their children in the department. “
“– In the long hallway towards the elevators that will take us to floor twelve, we met an indian father and his son. The boy had had a hard time playing with the other children because he could not Swedish. But he could speak English, just like our son, and was also dinosauriefreak.”
“– It was touching to see the two kids in the playroom on the breastplate of the county council in the white small sjukhussärkar. They sat on either side of a table, linked to a droppställning and discussing excitedly which dinosaurs were the most dangerous, fastest, läskigast and the strongest.”
“the cancer treatment will last for two and a half years.”
“– so far it is okay. So far it is not as difficult as the reactions of those I encounter suggests that it should be. So far, I have three children who are playing with each other reasonably common. Than for so long.”
“Family: Married, three children.”
“Lives: Vasastan, Stockholm.”
“are Reading right now: ”The polyglotta lovers” by Lina Wolff.”
“favourite authors: Hjalmar Söderberg, Arthur Koestler, and Ryszard Kapuscinski.”
