She Will Prevail

8 Pages 1998 Words

Persevere pər-sə-vir (vb): to persist (as in an undertaking) in spite of difficulties.

Nowadays it seems that cancer, in one way or another, affects everyone around us. Whether it is one’s mother, brother, aunt, grandfather or baby sister, cancer plays a major part in the daily lives of people around the world. For many forms of cancer, being diagnosed can be comparable to receiving a death sentence. Those who are able to muster up the strength to battle through this terrible disease in such difficult times deserve significant commendation.

As a child, my Nona, Helen, was an incredibly strong influence in my life. She was perfect in my eyes, living life exactly how she had always dreamed- a silver-haired beauty running her own shop, travelling around the world, supporting herself and constantly enjoying the company of her grandchildren. Making new friends was no challenge for her. Each time she returned from a trip, whether it was touring around India or a craft convention in San Diego, we would hear about new people she had met, all of them, “lovely, interesting individuals”. It was the rarest of occasions when a person would hear her making a negative comment about someone. In her free time, she would go for long walks along the seawall, getting plenty of exercise while taking in the natural beauty of Vancouver’s Stanley Park.

In late August 1997, my Nona became somewhat concerned, as for weeks her energy had seemed to be fractional of what it had been previously. She decided to consult her doctor, who did several blood tests, suggesting the possibility of cancer. Everyone scoffed at even the idea of my Nona having cancer. She was essentially the last person that could possibly deserve such a thing. Within two weeks, all of our worst fears were confirmed. The official diagnosis was released- my Nona had acute myelogonous leukemia.

As if coming to terms with cancer itself was not difficult in itself,...