I hope my "friend" is still alive
Today is May 31st. It's the final day of the month. That makes it the final day of Melanoma Awareness Month. Thirty-one days of raising money and awareness to try to beat this hideous disease.
In Chicago, it's followed by the local yearly "Miles For Melanoma" charity walk. This happens on Saturday, June 2nd. In addition to raising money and awareness, it's also an opportunity for members of the Melanoma community to bond in a show of solidarity.
It seems to happen at all of these events. You're at a park along the lakefront. You're enjoying a peaceful walk. You find someone and the next thing you know you're talking and sharing stories. It gets personal.
The photo at the top is from last years Melanoma walk. There's a person attached to the shirt. When I saw her wearing it, I thought a picture of it might come in handy for a piece like this, so I asked if I could take one. She agreed.
And then we started walking. And then we started talking.
We were trading our Melanoma histories. I went first. I told her about how I found my mole while researching a story about the connection of Melanoma and Parkinson's Disease. How lucky I was to have found it early. How lucky I was that a minor surgery took care it. How lucky I am to have no re-occurrences.
Then it was her turn.....
She wasn't nearly as lucky. Her Melanoma has returned four times. She's had multiple surgeries. That number is in the teens. She's also now fighting a different form of cancer. It's stage four and not going so well.
She told me she was on an exercise program to try to get into the best physical shape possible. She was hoping that would keep this latest cancer from killing her. I could tell she wasn't convinced it would.
It was a story that reminds you that someone always has it worse. It was a story that breaks you down into tears. It was a story that reminds you to be grateful for what you have. It was a story that makes you and your stage one Melanoma feel like an impostor.
Our personal walk ended and we shared a hug. The event ended and we shared a few more hugs. It was needed more for me than her. She's a lot tougher.
The next day that picture became the cover photo on my Facebook page. It's been there ever since.
It's been almost a year and I have no idea what's become of my new "friend" from that day. There's no way to track her down since I can't remember her name. I know I'll spend a portion of Saturday's walk trying to find her.
It's been almost a year and her cancer and her stage says that she should be dead. Her spirit and her determination says otherwise.
No matter what I find on Saturday, her motto will be on my mind.
Keep calm....not so easy. Fuck cancer....always.
Related Post: Missing the friend I never met
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