Dear Cancer,
You came to break me,but instead, you revealed me.
I stand before you, unbroken,
a living testament to resilience,
a spirit you could scar but never silence.
You tore through my body,
but you could not touch my soul.
Yes, you rerouted my life.
Yes, you dragged me through nights of endless tears.
But in the wreckage, you planted a gift:
the unshakable truth that every breath,
every sunrise,
every ordinary moment
is extraordinary.
You bruised my family.
You rattled my mind.
Yet you also lit pathways to strangers
who became lifelines,
to friendships forged in fire,
to love that shines sharper in the dark.
You stripped my hair,
my lashes,
my brows.
But you taught me beauty was never in the mirror.
It was in my scars,
in my courage,
in the fire of a body still fighting.
You are a nightmare to millions,
a merciless thief.
But we, the ones who endure you,
are learning to stand taller,
to fight harder,
to rise stronger.
And so, I thank you.
For forcing me to face my fear.
For showing me that strength is not the absence of breaking,
but the choice to rebuild.
For igniting a flame inside me that will not die,
a flame that says: I lived. I fought. I overcame.
One day, the world will be free of you.
And when that day comes,
I will still carry your lesson:
that courage is not found in comfort,
but in defiance.
So thank you, Cancer;
not just for the fight you gave me,
but for the flame you sparked within me.
That flame now lights the path for others,
reminding us that even in darkness,
we are never without hope.