Road Map

I never thought I’d get cancer.

Over and over, I said to myself:

“I shouldn’t be here. I should be somewhere else.

What am I doing here? How did I get to this place?”

At one time or another

we each pull out the tattered map of our lives

carefully unhinge the torn and ragged folds

press it flat on a table with both hands like an iron

lean over and trace its topography with a finger

frantically searching for the familiar X that says

You Are Here

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About the author:

In the fall of 2022, I was diagnosed with stage 2 B-cell, non-specified, non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, a rare and aggressive cancer of the lymphatic system. Over the next six months, I endured six grueling hospitalizations for chemotherapy and immunotherapy. On February 6, 2023, I rang the bell on the Oncology ward. I’m cancer-free. Throughout the ordeal, I wrote poems. I include a handful below to share with your readers. They are original and unpublished.