Browse our previous Cancer Unwrapped writing contest winners
Four months of empty memories have risen from the depths of my soul after all these years. As if I’m in a dream, I see this fuzzy-headed little girl skipping circles around me as she laughs and recalls story after story of being “sick.” I suddenly realized she was me,...
I sat down beside my eldest brother in the living room, my middle brother would not be home from college for another week. The Christmas tree was lit up vibrantly and the faint crackle of the fireplace was in the background. Then I saw my mom’s face, and I knew that...
For my eighth birthday I had a cupcake party. My best friends came over and we decorated and ate cupcakes. It was so much fun. I was in the second grade at Little Chico Creek and Mrs. Wren was my teacher. I was learning about multiplication and the solar system. I...
Growing up I was a goofy, energetic kid. I would spend my time running all over the place, finding things to amuse me, even when I didn’t understand why. I would go out and play weird made-up games with the neighborhood kids until sunset. My energy was so kinetic, yet...
November 12, 2017. Tick. Tick. Tick. I’m laying in a cold, white hospital room listening to the clock click off seconds of my life. Boom! The door crashes open. A slew of doctors barge in like they’ll win a prize for the most docs to fill up a room. Someone starts...
Well-known antonyms for hope: doubt, despair, pessimism. Most people forget to add 'cancer' to that list. For me, hopelessness was the only thing I felt throughout my father's struggle with cancer. If hope was the thing with feathers, then hopelessness must have been...
My life had been consistently perfect up until October 5th 2017. That was the day when my life turned completely upside down. She came home earlier than expected, and my dad went missing. They were outside and they sat in our car discussing her doctor's appointment...
Life in the Fisher household was just like any other family. My mom Liz was a stay home mom, and my dad Bill worked as a pharmacist. We were a normal family, fighting, laughing and enjoying life together. Everything changed in 2012 when I was in 5th grade. 'Kaeli I...
We were running through the waves of the ocean and the sun was shining brightly upon us. We were laughing and smiling without a care in the world. At that time I believed that bad things do not happen to good people like us. We live our whole lives and face nothing...