The cancer is gone, the reconstruction is over, but there are days that take me right back to the heat of the battle.
Yesterday was one of them.
Yesterday was a day of pink.
And a day of celebration.
And a day of friendship.
But it was also a day to remember that I lived while many others did not… that I get to carry on as if it never happened while others are walking through their own scary diagnosis right this very moment.
Cancer is never far from any of our minds, but sometimes it’s closer than others.
Jordan and I were out making an ice cream run last night when she softly spoke the words that often echo through my own heart. “Mom, it was so sad today to see how many women had reoccurrences. I hope your cancer never comes back.”
Me too, Baby. Me too.
But that’s why we fundraise and why we encourage others in their battle and why we celebrate. Because we never know what’s coming tomorrow, but we do know what we have to be grateful for today.
Your thing may not be breast cancer. But you have a thing. I know you do. You’re afraid of it. You may not let it overtake your day, but it occasionally haunts your mind.
If that happens today, may I gently suggest, from one survivor of something to another… focus on the celebration. See the good that surrounds you. Write it down if you have to and carry it around in your pocket. Then pull it out when the worry begins to creep in and sit in awe and wonder for a moment at the greatness of today and the One who made it happen.
It’s way more fun than worrying about tomorrow.
