[2021-01-18] I am

In response to yesterday's post, Long may it continue, a friend wrote to me today: "As for cancer always being with you, that may be true but your life is sooo much bigger than cancer." Others have expressed a similar sentiment. That got me thinking about what I am and what I'm more than.

I am a wife
I have learned to share a life while walking my own path

I am a mother
I have learned to nurture while standing out of the way

I am a daughter
I have learned to appreciate every conversation with my mom

I am a sister
I have learned to cherish my siblings—those who are here and the one who is gone but not forgotten

I am an aunt, a niece, a cousin
I have learned that relatives are friends who are never far

I am a friend
I have learned that friends come and go, but true friends return whenever we need them

I am a leader
I have learned to be kind, to be patient and to empathize

I am a colleague
I have learned that positive relationships with colleagues are to be nurtured and treasured

I am an employee
I have learned to follow bosses who care about me and not just my output

I am a lover
I have learned that I love music, art, poetry—anything that moves me

I am a baker
I have learned that sweet treats bring joy to others

I am a writer
I have learned to keep writing though it is hard

I am a storyteller
I have learned that my willingness to share gives others courage to be open

I am a woman
I have learned that I can do anything if I have to

I am a survivor
I have learned that I am more than cancer

In honour of A.A. Milne's birthday today, I leave you with two quotes that seem appropriate:

You are braver than you believe,
Stronger than you seem,
And smarter than you think

and

Wherever they go, and whatever happens to them on the way, in that enchanted place on the top of the forest, a little boy and his bear will always be playing.