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Woman Pens Moving Facebook Post Before Passing Away From Rare Cancer

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“It’s a strange thing to realize and accept your mortality at 26 years young.” Those are the opening words of a Facebook post from Holly Butcher, who eloquently wrote about accepting her mortality and loving life without the “small, meaningless stresses,” after being diagnosed with a rare cancer.

The 27-year-old from Brisbane, Australia, passed away from Ewing’s sarcoma the same day the heartfelt post was shared. Ewing’s sarcoma starts as a tumor in the bone or soft tissue, and is most commonly found in adolescents and young adults. When it spreads, the 5-year-survival rate is only 15 to 30 percent.

Her post gave readers an honest look at her diagnosis and life.

That’s the thing about life; It is fragile, precious and unpredictable and each day is a gift, not a given right.

I’m 27 now. I don’t want to go. I love my life. I am happy… I owe that to my loved ones. But the control is out of my hands.

After some self-reflection, Butcher gets to the core of the post: a heartfelt plea to others is to stop worrying about things that don’t matter, and to start caring about things that do.

You might have got caught in bad traffic today, or had a bad sleep because your beautiful babies kept you awake, or your hairdresser cut your hair too short. Your new fake nails might have got a chip, your boobs are too small, or you have cellulite on your arse and your belly is wobbling.

Let all that shit go.. I swear you will not be thinking of those things when it is your turn to go. It is all SO insignificant when you look at life as a whole. I’m watching my body waste away right before my eyes with nothing I can do about it and all I wish for now is that I could have just one more Birthday or Christmas with my family, or just one more day with my partner and dog. Just one more.

Butcher continued to share what she means by “enjoying and being in moments rather than capturing them through the screen of your phone.” These moments include cuddling with your dog, asking friends if they are OK, working to live (instead of living to work), saying no to things you don’t want to do, and telling loved ones how much you love them, every chance you get.

She ends the post by asking readers to help extend the life of others by regularly donating blood. It’s what gave her extended time with her loved ones.

“Blood donation (more bags than I could keep up with counting) helped keep me alive for an extra year — a year I will be forever grateful that I got to spend it here on Earth with my family, friends and dog. A year I had some of the greatest times of my life.”

Shortly after Butcher’s post was shared, her family announced she had passed away.

A testament to the words she wrote, Butcher’s post has received over 71,00 likes and reactions and has been shared over 55,000 times to date.

“You don’t know how much time you’ve got on this earth so don’t waste it being miserable. I know that is said all the time but it couldn’t be more true.”

Header photo courtesy of Facebook

Originally published: January 9, 2018
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