When her mother Leora was diagnosed with stage IV colorectal cancer, Eleanor Pierce stepped in to help with her moms care. From taking her to appointments, to ensuring her daily needs were taken care of, Eleanor was there with her mother until her passing in the spring of 2022. Since then, the Pierce family has been dedicated to raising awareness for colorectal cancer in Fort Worth and in the Twin Cities, and their hard work and advocacy has been recognized by our annual Blue Spark Award at the 2023 Get Your Rear in Gear – Twin Cities.
At Get Your Rear in Gear – Twin Cites, Eleanor shared a poem she wrote in honor of her mother, which you can read here:
While You Slept
I use to stare at you when you slept
Wondering what were you thinking
BUT
At least for a moment you weren’t in pain
At least for a moment your dreams could take you from this reality
At least for a moment you didn’t have to worry about cancer.
I often wish time would stand still
How do I capture this moment in time – maybe put it in a bottle….
This moment of peace – Where you didn’t have to worry about what to eat, how long the pain meds would last, would you be able to sleep through the night, and would you make it until tomorrow.
You weren’t a person of many words and you seldom complained, so in those moments of rest, I often wondered how you were handling all of this and how were you were REALLY doing?
As the days grew closer to the inevitable day….
It became evident that your body was getting tired, so you would rest more and more during the day.
The last five days in the hospital often feels like yesterday!
And even though we knew your prognosis, stage IV colon cancer…
Nothing could prepare us for the day you left.
I felt angry and robbed….I hated cancer! Why did cancer have to take our Mom!?
After the anger, and tears…
Then more anger and more tears, God reminded me of who He was and what cancer couldn’t steal…While battling cancer we loved even harder, we didn’t take for granted that we had tomorrow, it didn’t shatter your hope, we made as many memories as your health would allow, and it didn’t steal eternal life.
I realize now, to be absent from the body is the present with God. Mom you’re now resting in eternal peace, no more suffering and no more pain. You fought a good fight and now we will continue the fight! Cancer it ain’t over!
