I relay for the
stories.
Everyone has a
story and each story is precious.
Cancer is a
scary thing. Cancer has a tendency to end stories far before we are ready to
finish them. I have seen stories end abruptly, leaving me confused as to why
some lives end just as they are truly beginning.
The
reality that cancer really does take those close to us first hit me as a
15-year-old. After a soccer match on Saturday, April 2, 2011, I was greeted by
a text nobody should ever have to read, “Ty passed this morning. I’m sorry,
Paddy.” Coach Ty was 44. He left so many pages unwritten.
Ty
was one of the first figures I can remember on the soccer field. Five years
before his death, Ty was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer. He was given
fewer than 6 months to live. To think that fazed him was to underestimate
Ty. He taught his players to “always
give it your all” and “never give up.”
He didn’t care if it was merely a game or his very life for which he was
fighting. As I look around the room at Ty’s memorial service, I saw hundreds of
young people whom he had touched. The room was full of athletes. These were the
“tough guys.” The tough guys were crying. I was so grateful to be among them.
Ty’s
fight with cancer showed everyone around him that nothing could stop the
determined. Each time I step on a soccer field I think of Ty; I think of the
way he carried himself into challenges he faced. Ty was a huge influence on me,
both as a soccer player and as a person. He not only told me to be a
competitor, he showed me how to be a competitor. He taught by the way he
battled on and off the field. I am a better person for having known Ty Lewis.
For that, I will always be grateful to him.
I believe the reason I love the
battle stories is because my story would not be possible without one. The
warrior I will forever cherish is my mother. As a young momma of one she was
told she had a tough battle against cancer in front of her and even if she were
to emerge victorious she would no longer be able to have children.
My mom was one of the lucky ones.
She battled and was victorious- she beat cancer. I am one of nine children.
That is eight extra stories that cancer could not take from us. Not only has
her story been an unbelievable one, but also because of her victory the world
has so much more life. This is the reason I relay.
I relay because
nobody should face an unfinished story. I relay because I believe that through
every step we become closer to finding a cure. I relay for Ty and I relay for
Mommy, the authors of two amazing stories.
