Cast Off

Posted bywordsandcoffee1Posted inCancer, PoetryTags:, , , , , , 
Cast out to sea,
warbling wayward.
Only the wind speaks,
offering its favors--
its knowledge and greed, 
gathering our labors
to skim waves so free,
spreading them skyward.
Our grief? Let it be,
whistling onward.
Say goodbye to me,
but I'll save my words.

This week’s Wea’ve Written Weekly from the Skeptic’s Kaddish involves breakups. You can find Paula Light’s prompt poem, “Welcome Home”, here, and this is her prompt: Write about a breakup (not necessarily romantic) in any poetic form, not to exceed 20 lines.

I think my breakup poem could be interpreted in many ways, but to me the meaning is about breaking up with my seeming-perpetual foe, cancer. The image is one I took while kayaking with my husband on Lake Superior last autumn. The wind was so powerful that it felt like it could blow away all of our worries. It was perfect for celebrating a year of remission at the time.

On our Lake Superior trip last October.
Ringing the bell when I finished treatment in April 2021.

That trip also marked our 10-year wedding anniversary, so it was a perfect trip to celebrate togetherness as well. One lesser known casualty of cancer is relationships, which I’ve talked about here before. I’ve read a lot about this issue from other survivors, who have dealt with dating or divorce during or right after treatment. I’m fortunate that those weren’t a part of my cancer story; treatment and all the difficulties we endured as a family brought us closer together. I’m not sure if there’s a perfect formula that makes this togetherness work during difficult times, but if there is, it involves communication, faith, and a strong support system.

Skipping stones on my First Descents trip this May.

Another reason a cancer “breakup” fit this week’s poetry prompt is that today is my Three Year Cancerversary! I received the infamous call on December 30th, 2019, and my world flipped upside-down from there. I’m still turning it back around, which is a more complicated process than I anticipated; however, I’m making progress. So, on this day, I say, let’s all cast our worries out to sea and skip them off on waves like so many smooth stones. Happy New Year!

14 thoughts on “Cast Off”

  3. I’m proud of you and your husband for working hard on your physical health and your marital health! I’m also thankful for your healing and continued remission story. We’ll keep you both tucked in prayer as life moves along.

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  4. You are so unbelievably talented in poetry. Happy cancerversary too! I am so happy that you remain cancer free, Thank God! Wonderful pictures of you with the family too!

    Liked by 1 person

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