The clock on the wall ticks slowly. It is the night before the biggest day of my life. As I look at this cardboard sign I wrote with my own trembling hands, a mixture of paralyzing fear and overwhelming hope takes hold of me. “Tomorrow is my surgery. Wish me luck?” I wrote the words carefully, but my blue pen felt so heavy.
I’ve been preparing for this moment for months, years perhaps, and now that it’s just hours away, it all seems surreal. When I look at the camera, the tears just fall. I cannot stop them. My eyes are red and tired. I am so scared, but I am also trying to be brave.