Cancer Taught Me: Mary’s Story

Cancer teaches you a lot of things. Some are profound and some are just simple, common sense things that we forget during the normal day-to-day.

I’m not going to tell you I had some major a-ha moment when my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. I was a college student and am an only child of divorced parents. It was a lot to handle. My—now—brother-in-law had gone through the same diagnosis with his mother. When he found out about my mom he said, “My only advice is you have to be there.”

So I was there; at least I think I was and what I remember most about my mom going through treatment was “hair.” I remember she held onto her hair when she showered. I remember she got a wig that I tried on to make her laugh when it was finally time for it. I remember the baseball hats she chose to wear instead because it was summer and those wigs are hot! What cancer has taught me is that it’s just hair.

You have to let learn to let some things go. I know it sounds trite to say “don’t sweat the small stuff” but, like I said before... common sense.

One of the best scenes from Sex and the City is Samantha at the breast cancer benefit. She takes off her wig while trying to give an inspirational speech to a room full of women because she is so hot and all the other wig-wearing ladies follow. It’s classic and when I see it I laugh until I cry. Because after all, it’s just hair. And it will make you sweat…

-Mary Green