When My Mom Found Out She Had Cancer

My mom texted me a photo of her biopsy results because she couldn’t read much English. When I read “malignant tumor”, I knew I had to be the one to deliver probably some of the worst news of her life. I needed to help her get through this.

So I called her and told her.

Instead of crying or feeling hopeless, she said to me in a comforting voice, “You have to be brave”.

That’s when I start falling apart. Even when she was the one who was sick, she was concerned about me being sad and afraid. But more than that, she was thinking ahead. From that day on, she might not be there for me, to encourage me, to stand up for me. I needed to be brave myself now.

I will never forget those words over the phone as I stood next to my bed in my college dorm. The wave of emotion that overcame me in that moment.

She was always the one who was strong during difficult times. And even in that moment, she was ready to face potential bad news. She, honestly, is my hero. Always there for me, to emotionally support me, to hold me.

With her by my side, I was ready to take on the world. And we did. We smashed the socio-economic barrier. We went from lower class immigrants who struggled to make ends meet to getting into several Ivy League schools and graduating from one of them.

With her drive and motivation becoming my fuel, we were unstoppable.

But alas, she has long passed away now. Yet, I will never forget the bravery she always had. And I will never forget her words to me: “You have to be brave”.

In this lonely world that I many times have and will have to inevitably face by myself, I may get scared and want to give up. But it’s during these exact times when challenges are imminent that I have to be most brave.

And I will. I won’t let her down.