"CANCER SUCKS." We see it on t-shirts, posters, flyers, bracelets. To tell you the truth, cancer (and its potential outcome) really does suck. It sucks the joy out of living a peaceful life. It sucks the sleep out of nights spent worrying. It sucks the energy out of family members finding a way to be 'strong.' It sucks the daily routine from achy chemotherapy patients. It sucks the assurance of having a father, mother, sister, brother, grandma, grandpa, or child in your life forever right out of your control. It just... sucks.
Two weeks ago I received a morning call from my mother telling me that my grandma has breast cancer. Cancer sucked the logic out of me and I immediately took this as a death sentence. I'm not joking. Within hours I had decided I needed to start mental and emotional preparation for losing this beautiful woman who has been everything to me for 21 years. I didn't sleep that night. Cancer sucked the sleep from me.
The next morning I called my grandma. Sweet, sweet Helen. I asked what she was up to that morning. Her response? "Oh, just baking a pie for the neighbors! Earl gives grandpa tomato juice and I make Earl pies." HOLY SELFLESS WOMAN. I melted in a pool of my own selfishness. After asking how she was holding up, I could hear her smile on the other end of the phone line. "It is what it is, and it's going to be what it's going to be. We just have to pray. It will be what it will be."
There is something different about an attitude like hers. I realized upon speaking with her that I should not try to pray the cancer away. My grandma has this total and complete trust that whatever God's will is for our lives, we simply need to pray for acceptance and strength. It WILL happen regardless.
I think we tend to forget that if we believe in Jesus, we believe in the Resurrection. We were created for Heaven, not earth. My grandma has lived a holy, long life. She is going to fight this disease, but she is not going to force her will. Only HIS will... Because "it will be what it will be." Her positivity and trust in God's plans are truly inspirational. She gets it. She understands purpose and pain and Heaven. And she finds hope and solace in that knowledge.
Point in case...Cancer sucks. Suffering is hard. Pain feels unbearable at times. But Heaven replenishes. The knowledge that we were created for so much more than this life brings forth a fountain of hope. There IS purpose in suffering. There WILL be a day that things will be okay. They will be more than okay, actually. Things will be PERFECT. Although my little eyes struggle to see it, I know that my grandma is right when she says that all we can do is pray.
And face suffering with acceptance.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IExdrZGQVeI
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