A 25 year old man; no promise of a future.
A 80 year old grandma; hopeless fear & pain in her desperate grasp
Cancer-does not discriminate.
Each one of us has been touched by the effects of this unmerciful disease.
It might have been your best friends mother, a neighbor, god forbid- your child, grandmother, aunt or uncle, or even YOU.
100% of us have felt the impact and fear that comes with the diagnosis. Directly or not...it hurts.
As those of you who follow my blog know... I lost my grandmother to this disease two months ago.
There are still nights that I lay awake crying. Moments when I pick up the phone to call her for advice. Picture her laugh and smile. Crave to hold her hand in mine. There are times when the weight of missing her literally HURTS my heart and burns my throat.
I want nothing more then to hold her one last time... and tell her I love her, and that I strive to be the type of woman that she was.
The beauty of my grandmother was that she NEVER complained, never asked for pity, never spoke a negative word.
After her radiation and chemo treatment she would come back to the nursing home frail and quivering.
She would say, "I am not a tragedy. I lived a long and beautiful life, raised an amazing family, loved and travelled... A true tragedy is the 26 year old woman who was in the waiting room with two children and a scarf on her head... She has a life too live, a family to feed, and memories to make. I have done those things. I am not afraid to die. She has just began to live."
Like I said before, cancer does not discriminate.
It does not care if your 5 years old, just finished college, or have a family.
Each day, millions of people hear the words "you have cancer"
Each day, millions of people loose their battle
Each day, survivors live with the scars.
But... more importantly we need to remember.
Each day, we fight for a cure
Each day, we live like it is our last
Each day, we do something GOOD
....
Is a day that brings beauty into life, and gives those millions of "fighters" something worth fighting for.
1 out of 3 people develops cancer. 1 out of 5 people dies because of it.
You or I, could fall into those statistic.
The reality of that fact- is undeniable, scary, painful, and wrenching.
But it is a reality.
Even if you are not part of that statistic, even if you havent been affect, even if you dont believe in what I believe in- PLEASE try to remember...
Someone, somewhere, just lost their life... It could have been a child, a mother or a father, grandmother.
Regardless of who it was.
Remember that: YOU are still here.
You have been blessed with the beauty of health, the chance to live your life, and the ability to love....
Do something that makes life matter. Live your life to your fullest potential... For the ones who lost theirs.
Dont ever stop fighting. Dont ever give up. Dont ever stop counting your blessings.
Because a few bad test results, doctors visits, and three simple words... Can change everything.
In a moment you could be gone.
Make it count.
xoxo
RIP
Steve Jobs
&
I love and miss you Grandma... Every night I lay there and picture moments with you.... Ill never forget.
I have chills... this is truly touching. It's so true. Too many times cancer has altered and changed my life in ways that hurt. Ways that are irreversible and hard. But ways that have forced me to grow and change and LIVE. Live every day that my sister layed in bed immovable. Live every day that my grandpa lost. Every day that my friend- a 16 year old boy- spent injected by the poison of chemotherapy. And every one of those days made me grow. Thanks for helping me remember. I love you.
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