Bravery comes in many forms
For some it is in battle in a foreign land
For others it is in battle with their body

One day a diagnosis out of the blue
Turns life on its head
Turfs plans out the window

What’s this?
Why me?
I don’t know what to do

Plaintive cries echo in the darkness
As you stand alone despite those around you
For you alone can fight this battle

There is advice of course
From the medics and others
There is treatment in various forms

Diagnosis turns to prognosis
At some point down the line
You always hope for the best

Against all odds you fight
Try this and that
Mainstream and sometimes out of the stream

You do whatever you need to do
It is the way
It is your fight

But life is such that death
- that word we are not meant to utter -
Is inevitable and so it arrives

Even when expected
Such as it can be
It knocks the living sideways

But we need to respect
It was your battle
You chose weapons that suited you

You fought so hard
It wasn't always easy
But fight you did

And now you have moved on from this life
But please know
My life is richer because of you

You will never be forgotten