Write On, Downtown issue 1, 2007

capable of accepting. Regardless of whether he had cancer or not, I still did not grasp why he was often emotional and angry. I, myself, did nothing to help the situation, only worsen it with my teenage attitude and ways.

Cancer is a horrible disease. Not only does it take over the life of the diagnosed, but it puts a difficult burden on the loved ones around them. Many people are faced with difficulties throughout their lives, including diseases. Cancer is one of the most common diseases in our society today. It varies from moderate to severe, but no cancer is good cancer. It controls peoples’ lives; it is mentally, physically and emotionally straining.

Unfortunately, in today’s society, cancer is becoming too familiar. The most common form of cancer is cancer of the skin. Whether it is skin cancer or lung cancer, it is a life threatening disease. Doctors and scientists have worked vigorously to find ways to cure and fight this disease. As a result, we have treatment methods like, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Whether it is cancer or any other disease, it is nothing that anyone wants to be faced with.

Today, I can honestly say that I am happy with the struggles my Dad and I have endured. I cannot go a day without talking to my dad. He has become more than just my dad during recent years; he is my hero. I admire the great distance he has come from so many struggles in his life. I look up to him, someone who puts every person in his life before himself. Looking back, the couple years of fighting and not getting along were worth the relationship I cherish with my father now. Cancer is such a horrible disease, and it takes over people’s lives. I have learned to find the good in the bad. I found the good in the bad of my father having cancer. It may not have been at the time he was ill, but I now see the worth in it. Appreciation is the biggest lesson I have learned from