Five Long Years Ago

When the news arrived,
Shock - not knowing what to do,
Fear - from the unknown.
Doctors, surgeries,
Visits to clinics,
Late nights in ER.
Chemo and radiation,
Praying, just for today.
The future - disappeared.
The end... or... the beginning...
Of Year One.

It was so long,
That first year.
Felt a little better,
When it left.
But, new fears arose,
With every cough, sniffle,
Or Illness.
There would be celebrations,
Along the way.
Your hair returned,
Son graduating college.
But, fears still ruled Year Two.

A vacation, some gardening,
Lots of home remodeling.
Still don't mention the future.
But, privately, we begin to dream...
Anxiety sets in, with every test,
We wait for results,
For numbers,
We know so well.
"Could it be?" ruled Year Three.

A little beam - what is it?
Could it be a light,
Out of this dark world?
Still living day to day.
Noticing every little sign.
Wondering, if remission would end.
We've come so far,
But, still have forever to go.
We keep moving on.
Year Four was full...
Dreams, hopes, and prayers.
But, the future, still isn't mentioned.

That beam is getting brighter.
As days turn to weeks,
Weeks to months.
Count down begun,
An end in sight.
In silence,
We anticipate...
But, no words are said.

Like a pitcher throwing,
A no-hitter.
We live in fear, of dreams,
Everything becomes a jinx.

Two months left,
Brightness can be seen,
The warmth, so comforting
And peaceful.
One week... one day...
Its over...
Five Years... cancer...
Has gone its way
Five Years, living day to day.
Five Years, of holding our breath.

Today, we let out a sigh.
We made it! We're alive!
Today, the future, came back.
A past, we both survived.
A past, we won't forget.

Hand - in - hand,
The future is ours!
We'll start again,
We live life, for today.
But, finally, a future,
Where we can have a say.