When you lose a loved one to Cancer, one of the most
difficult things to deal with is the feeling of helplessness. Somehow, you end
up with the feeling that there was nothing you could do to help the person who
was suffering. Nothing you could do to make them stay. I know that feeling of helplessness. It will
be four years this week since my father in law passed away. One January, four
years ago, we got the call informing us that my healthy and active father in
law had been diagnosed with cancer. We were shocked and devastated at the news.
There had been no symptoms and by the time he was diagnosed, it was too late.
Many different treatment options were tried out. None of them worked and four
months later, he was gone. Just like that. He never saw my daughter, his granddaughter
who was born a month after he passed away. To me, he was my father. To my son,
his four year old buddy and to my husband, he was a friend. Four years later we still feel his
absence.
Yet, one thing that changed for me personally after my
father-in-law passed away is the understanding and acceptance of the fact that
life is unpredictable. Things don’t
always go as planned. You never know what awaits you at the next turn. So, I try harder now. I try harder to take
each day as it comes. I try harder to hold on tight to the people in my life
whom I love and I try harder to always look at the positive side of things.
Because life is just too short to be living it any other way.
This blog post is in honor of the two strong and inspiring
individuals who lost their life to Cancer…my friends’ friend and my father in
law. They may be gone but their memories will always stay. And their positive attitude during their most
difficult times will continue to inspire us.
Signing off on my first blog post of 2012 with a thank you
to all my friends who inspire, encourage and motivate me and this quote by Anthony
J. D'Angelo
‘Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring
your own sunshine.’
