Cancer strikes when you least expect it. Blindsided, you are swept off your very feet and left in a puddle on the floor wondering what hit you, where did it come from and how do you get up again with this villain attacking you. You lay there, quivering and sobbing trying to gain your bearings back, which way is up and if I get up how do I move forward? Slowly, somehow, you pull your feet under you and shakily rise and think, okay, I have made it vertical, how do I take a step? How do I move forward with this terrible foe against me, how do I fight, how do I live? Dazed and confused you muddle through the mist, stumble through the fog trying to find the path that will take you forward.
Then you see the light shining up ahead, and though you don't know what it is, it is bright and you move jerkily towards it on unsteady feet reaching out, trying to grab something, anything, to steady your gait. And then you feel it, strong hands, capable arms reaching out and seizing your ravaged body, steadying you and giving you hope. Helping you move onward towards an uncertain and unsure future. Suddenly you realize it is the hand of God on you, guiding you ahead, giving you the crutch you need to keep moving. Then He brings in your friends, your family and surrounds you with them to give you the foundation you need to keep going here on this earth while you fight this battle. And you wearily put one foot in front of the other, not sure of where it will lead but certain that there is a future worth fighting for just around the next bend. For in that moment your children share their day, your grandchild takes your hand, your parents stop by to visit, your lover kisses your cheek and you know that although it isn't the life you had envisioned, it is a life worth living and a life worth fighting for. So you rely on your steady support to help keep you going and give thanks to God for providing so much light in the midst of the darkness.
