October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Unfortunately, almost all people have been or will be affected by cancer in some way during their lifetime, whether that means actually fighting the disease or supporting a loved one in the fight against the disease. For those of you reading this who are currently struggling with the trauma that cancer or any disease has brought to you or your loved ones, I wish you strength because I have been there. To those of you who have survived and carried out the message that we as people are defined by so much more than just a disease or disorder, I salute you. This article is dedicated to my mom, who is a melanoma survivor; my grandparents who are cancer, heart disease, and Alzheimer’s survivors; and everyone else out there who lives with a serious disease or disorder.
The first issue I want to address in this article is a simple but highly offensive cultural phenomenon that has plagued our society for the past century or so. People are more than just their disease or disorder. Hence, calling a person with autism disorder “autistic” is demeaning. The person is a person before their disorder. The proper way of referring to that individual is “a person who has autism.” Now that we are past that side note, I will move on to my main point.
Knowing that a chronic disease will eventually affect everyone, why do we still continue to act like we and our loved ones are invincible? Ever since I was little, my parents instilled a rule in my house of ending every conversation with a loved one with “I love you,” regardless of the content of the conversation. The reason being, what if you are in a fight with that person and that is the last conversation you ever get to have with them? You will always regret your last words not being “I love you.” You never know when something crazy will happen, so for the future, be open with your feelings, especially towards your loved ones and you will live with much fewer regrets.
Lastly, do not take your health for granted. This is a common theme in almost all of my articles, but if you are teetering on the edge of trying something new or not, do it. In hours, days, years or decades, you may not be able to. You never know when your next opportunity will be. My mom, who fought off Melanoma for over a year, just climbed a glacier with me despite still continuing recovery from all the treatments. As we crossed the cold, unforgiving and unknown terrain, I looked up at her face as I struggled to climb one of the hills and all I could see was a pure smile. She was experiencing the thrill of a lifetime as she truly beat her previous diagnosis.
To all of the people out there who get knocked down because of an injury, illness or disorder, no matter how serious it is, just do not let it stop you from living your life. Your injury does not define you, but your actions do. What you stand for and believe in is what people will remember you for in life and for generations after death. At the end of the day, don’t sit back and think about what you would have done differently if you had only known that you were only going to be healthy and capable for so long. Keep on doing, and when you do reflect on the past, give yourself the opportunity to think about all the times you did accomplish all of your goals.
