How Courage & Heart Defeated Cancer
Donation protected
Hi,
Meet Lillian. She's a cancer survivor. But you would've never guessed her history because of the genuine aura she puts out every day. Combined with the fact that she's a pure fighter, you'd think she's a superhero. Superheroes are kind of my thing. I grew up watching them in TV shows and movie theaters. They make me feel... right. That's not the best way to describe the feeling I get, but I just feel right when I watch them. You see, Lillian's my very own superhero.
Back-pedal about two years from now, we met on a grassy field as I was a first time soccer coach and she was a first time soccer player. Little did I know, she was currently at the time, in remission from her leukemia. It was just fascinating hearing that for the first time. Maybe perhaps it was the fact that she's a kid and they are generally just happy little beings, but there was just something about her that made her special. Here's this kid, finishing the last part of a multi-year battle, about to take on something new like soccer.
Looking back, I didn't think I would continue coaching especially with what I have to deal with at school, but I kept on doing it... and so did Lillian. As the seasons went on, I got to see her advance her skills on the field, but more importantly, I got to see her grow as a kid. I became attached to her for reasons I can't describe in words. It made me feel... right.
Fast forward to present time. It has been about 3 months since she's been free of cancer. Yippee right!? For the record, I wish this story I'm about to talk about was made up, but it's true. So I'm at school, and I get this text from a number I don't know, and it says "I love you". The silly me wanted to reply back with something inappropriate, but I decided to ask who this person was. Turns out it was Lillian with a brand new phone! (thank God I didn't say anything bad haha). She told me she was going to the doctor, and I just assumed it was a normal checkup... But a couple hours later she sends me this:
...how do you even respond to something like this? Has a kid ever texted someone else that they have cancer??? I didn't know how to feel. My initial thought was that she's going to beat this... but why is this happening to her again? It's just unbelievably not fair... this sweet girl literally just went through this crap and now she has to go through it again... it's just not fair. All I wanted to do was scream.
I got to talk to her on the phone and tried my best to say whatever I could while keeping my composure. I couldn't tell how she was feeling, but I needed to remind myself why she's my superhero. Lillian has been my designated goalie for most seasons. She's not the best goalie ever, but what she lacks, she excels in qualities that superheroes are known for. And that's heart and courage. I believe that's what helped her beat cancer the first time... There's no reason to think otherwise this time around.
To end, this fundraiser is not aimed so much for her medical bills which would probably just fix a small dent, but it's for Lillian. For the countless hours of time as a kid she loses because she's too busy fighting this cancer. When she finally beats this, maybe she can use some of this money to do things she missed out on. Like perhaps buy a superhero costume.
I want to try to get this goal done by roughly December 17th, which is around the time I will be seeing her. Thank you guys so much.
"Oh don't mind me, I'm just beating cancer again."
Meet Lillian. She's a cancer survivor. But you would've never guessed her history because of the genuine aura she puts out every day. Combined with the fact that she's a pure fighter, you'd think she's a superhero. Superheroes are kind of my thing. I grew up watching them in TV shows and movie theaters. They make me feel... right. That's not the best way to describe the feeling I get, but I just feel right when I watch them. You see, Lillian's my very own superhero.
Back-pedal about two years from now, we met on a grassy field as I was a first time soccer coach and she was a first time soccer player. Little did I know, she was currently at the time, in remission from her leukemia. It was just fascinating hearing that for the first time. Maybe perhaps it was the fact that she's a kid and they are generally just happy little beings, but there was just something about her that made her special. Here's this kid, finishing the last part of a multi-year battle, about to take on something new like soccer.
Looking back, I didn't think I would continue coaching especially with what I have to deal with at school, but I kept on doing it... and so did Lillian. As the seasons went on, I got to see her advance her skills on the field, but more importantly, I got to see her grow as a kid. I became attached to her for reasons I can't describe in words. It made me feel... right.
Fast forward to present time. It has been about 3 months since she's been free of cancer. Yippee right!? For the record, I wish this story I'm about to talk about was made up, but it's true. So I'm at school, and I get this text from a number I don't know, and it says "I love you". The silly me wanted to reply back with something inappropriate, but I decided to ask who this person was. Turns out it was Lillian with a brand new phone! (thank God I didn't say anything bad haha). She told me she was going to the doctor, and I just assumed it was a normal checkup... But a couple hours later she sends me this:
...how do you even respond to something like this? Has a kid ever texted someone else that they have cancer??? I didn't know how to feel. My initial thought was that she's going to beat this... but why is this happening to her again? It's just unbelievably not fair... this sweet girl literally just went through this crap and now she has to go through it again... it's just not fair. All I wanted to do was scream.
I got to talk to her on the phone and tried my best to say whatever I could while keeping my composure. I couldn't tell how she was feeling, but I needed to remind myself why she's my superhero. Lillian has been my designated goalie for most seasons. She's not the best goalie ever, but what she lacks, she excels in qualities that superheroes are known for. And that's heart and courage. I believe that's what helped her beat cancer the first time... There's no reason to think otherwise this time around.
To end, this fundraiser is not aimed so much for her medical bills which would probably just fix a small dent, but it's for Lillian. For the countless hours of time as a kid she loses because she's too busy fighting this cancer. When she finally beats this, maybe she can use some of this money to do things she missed out on. Like perhaps buy a superhero costume.
I want to try to get this goal done by roughly December 17th, which is around the time I will be seeing her. Thank you guys so much.
"Oh don't mind me, I'm just beating cancer again."
Organizer
Huan Pham
Organizer
Fort Worth, TX
