Christmas can be a difficult time for those who have lost loved ones, but for Jocelyn Williams and her daughter Elke, 4, December gives them the chance to raise awareness of the disease that killed their beloved Michael.
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Michael was diagnosed with bowel cancer in May 2014. The 32-year-old died five months later. Devastatingly, after two surgeries doctors believed they had got all the cancer, but it re-emerged.
To help cope with the loss the pair talk about him every day, and light a candle on occasions like Christmas. They look at pictures of him, and they watch their wedding video. She said some days were more emotional than others.
"You can't spend a day crying because kids won't cope with that," Ms Williams said.
"They can cope with a little bit of sadness, but then you need to get on and do things that need to be done."
"I think that in some ways, it isn't easier but it helps with coping when you've got a child to look after. They bring so much joy with all their little quirks."
Elke remembers things about her dad the two haven't spoken about, and when that happens Ms Williams is often floored.
"She was pretty little, but it's amazing what she can remember. She'll say, 'remember when this happened', or 'daddy used to say this to me'.
"It can be pretty emotional, especially when you're just going about your everyday business and she comes out with something."
This month an initiative called Decembeard is helping raise awareness for early detection of bowel cancer. It is the second biggest cancer killer, according to Bowel Cancer Australia.
Last year for the campaign, Ms Williams crocheted a beard. This year, her aim was to raise awareness among friends, and give people the facts about the cancer.
"I want to try and help people discover it earlier when it's more treatable than it was for Michael," she said.
"For me, it's almost like a Christmas gift. If I can help someone else not have to go through this, even if it's only one family, then that would be amazing."
Since Michael's death, Ms Williams has tried hard to continue to enjoy life with her daughter.
"I've kind of had a philosophy since Michael died that life's short and you never know when your time is up, or when something pretty traumatic will happen and change things," she said.
"So I've tried to really enjoy life as much as I can in the last two years. I've done a lot of travelling and just enjoying the time I've got with Elke, because you never know when things might change."
Donate to the cause at decembeard2016.everydayhero.com/au/jocelyn
