"A Monster Called Breast Cancer" by Synnika Lofton

A downward spiral.

The speed is akin to an uncontrolled

plunge into a medical Sunken Place.

We are a blues people.

We speak sun-words.

We didn’t ask for this.

We didn’t ask for this.

The Most High is too kind

to put his children in a condition,

too kind to put His lesser gods in

a fight to merely exist with

infections,

bacteria,

incessant beeps

in the night,

machines designed to keep

the body cool.

We are a blues people.

We speak sun-words.

We didn't ask for this.

We didn’t ask for this.

I observe her struggle to breathe.

Her cough scares me, but the nurse

says this is progress.

This is a road to a solution,

to health,

to wellness.

My baby is a fighter.

My baby is a dreamer.

She’s equipped to slay beasts.