I watched the stars twinkle outside my window; they appeared only slightly out of my reach. The moon was glowing beautifully lighting up a passage in my room allowing me to identify the clothes covering my floor as I had left them, before slithering into my bed earlier. I heard the wind whistling outside making leaves brush against each other. Fall was my favorite season and had always been.
I remember as a little girl, I would always make hot chocolate covered in tiny marshmallows before going to bed; I’d go to my room, sit on my window sill and take it all in. The smell of hot chocolate in addition to drowning marshmallows tickled my nose; the beautiful colors of the trees illuminated by the moon; the stars keeping the moon company in the night time sky; my silk pajama bottoms rubbing against my thighs keeping me warm but cool enough that I could still be wrapped in my favorite blanket. These evening still beat every memory I hold from my childhood.
It all ended the afternoon of October 9th 2007, I was nine years old, I had an appointment with my family doctor to get my test results back, I hadn’t been feeling well lately. I was sitting in the waiting room, the strong odor of sanitizer in addition to cleaning products was giving me a headache. When it was finally my turn, the nurse called out my name before directing me to a beige room with a cushioned grey bed, two hard black chairs along with a wooden desk. I sat on one of the chairs; Mom sat on the other one.
By the time my doctor finally arrived the chair had dug in my bum to the point where my lower body was almost covered with numbness. He walked into the room with an odd facial expression; I instantly knew something was wrong. He leaned back on the desk, asked me how I was feeling; then seriousness took over his face and he announced it was bad news. Mom’s face dropped, I could see her lips trembling. And that’s when my world came crumbling down, he softly spoke the bad news. Mom couldn’t hold herself in any longer, tears started to race down to her blushed cheeks. I had just been diagnosed with leukemia.
I didn’t believe it, I couldn’t! I kept denying it and telling myself it wasn’t true but on October 17th, that morning on my pillow was proof I couldn’t deny. I picked up my hair and started crying, there was nothing else I could do. I was scared. Even though it was morning, I tried the one thing that made me smile no matter what, hot chocolate by the window. It made me forget for a little while until it really hit me, I had cancer, I had a deadly disease.
I constantly lived in fear. After 6 months of chemotherapy, my doctor told me I only had one year to live, but I continued chemo a little while longer. Chemo made me tired as well as soar but I’m glad I kept trying because here I am, 6 years later, still breathing. My doctor says it was a miracle, but with the help and prayers of many people, I had triumphed. I had kicked cancer’s butt.