Member-only story

One Lump or Two Without the Coffee

Cancer isn’t sweet.

Karen Schwartz
5 min readJul 10, 2022
KoolShooters — Pexels

What happens to the psyche when you’re waiting for news, not yet sure if it’s good or it’s bad? I’m in that predicament with a heart that yearns to stay positive, but a mindset that isn’t sure. Rumour has it that there’s little sense in worrying because it won’t change the outcome, but to fret is my pattern — a learned response that’s difficult to break.

But in this darkened hour, I see my resilience is showing. Pushing past tears of discomfort and fear, I see a light at the end of the tunnel. There’s something to be said of that. I am fortunate to have the capacity to choose where I place my focus — to recognize that harping on whether the lump I found is cancer or a cyst will show itself with time.

The tests are done, now all I need to do is await the verdict. The jury is out; I strive for a positive judgment in my favour.

Breast cancer is not common in my family, however, a couple of cousins dealt with it in their lifetime. One succumbed to the disease; the other beat it only to pass away due to other causes. The fact that close relatives are cancer-free is an encouraging sign in my favour. But nothing stops me from being the first. Cancer always needs to start somewhere.

--

--

Karen Schwartz
Karen Schwartz

Written by Karen Schwartz

Children's picture book author, fiction writer, personal essayist, kindness specialist, and lover of chocolate.

Responses (7)