“Our time is limited” - Andrew Strauss opens up on how death of wife due to lung cancer changed his outlook on life

Former England captain Andrew Strauss has admitted that losing his wife to lung cancer in 2018 changed his outlook on life. He stated that he is now more conscious of keeping the people most important to him happy.

Strauss’ wife Ruth passed away in December 2018 at the age of 46 after suffering from a rare form of lung cancer.

Speaking to The Telegraph, the legendary England opener opened up on how the death of his wife made him look at life from a different perspective. He said:

“Our time is limited, and therefore I need to be more conscious about what I do and don't do. This might mean experiencing things that weren't appealing to me before, or saying no to things even though I don't want to let people down. But most of all, it means keeping the people most important to me happy.”

Andrew Strauss urged those suffering from dreaded diseases to open up and seek support instead of grieving all by themselves. He added:

“It is still far too much of a taboo. Many people feel very uncomfortable, not knowing what to say to those who are going through it. They shudder, almost wanting to pretend that it's not going on. It's absurd, because we're all going to be touched by death in life. Grief still feels very beneath the surface to me.

“And that has to change, because otherwise there will be people devoid of support or knowledge. You can be in your own little room grieving, without knowing where to turn.”

Admitting that he still gets reminders of the personal tragedy, Strauss concluded:

“You might have a setback, or you might hear a story that's sad. It's still there. I'll be very disappointed if it ever gets to the stage that it's not.”

Strauss played 100 Tests and 127 ODIs for England, scoring 7037 and 4205 runs respectively.

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Red for Ruth Day to be observed during Lord’s Test

Day 2 of the second Ashes 2023 Test at Lord’s on Thursday, June 29, will be observed as Red for Ruth Day.

The color was chosen by the Ruth Strauss Foundation as it was Ruth’s favorite. For this day, fans, broadcasters and volunteers, among others, at Lord’s are being encouraged to wear something red.

The idea is inspired from former Australian fast bowler Glenn McGrath, who oversees the ‘Pink Test’. This involves the New Year’s match at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) and is observed in memory of his wife Jane, who died of breast cancer in 2008.