Jayden Riley
The Year of the Tumor
It was the year of two broken legsThe year I heard “brain tumor” by my doctor
The year I spent more than a month in hospitals
The year I lost the ability to speak
The year I went blind
The year I could no longer hear
The year I spent weeks in a wheelchair
The year with so many questions
And very few answers
The year that oncoming snow brought forth so much pain
The year I could no longer climb stairs
The year I couldn’t bathe myself
The year I couldn’t use the bathroom without help
The year of failed tests and failed medications
The year I was told “we don’t know”
The year I was told it wasn’t actually a brain tumor
The year I learned about my pseudotumor
The year of so many losses
And not nearly enough gains
The year I had to learn to walk again
The year of using a wheelchair
The year of using a cane
And still doing so occasionally
The year of the two broken legs
That weren’t actually broken
The year I was convinced I was going to die
Terrified I would die
The year I wanted to die
It was the year that I lost hope
The year that exhausted me
The year I fought
It was the year I didn’t let the pseudotumor kill me
Copyright © 2014 Jayden Riley
