On the Fifth Anniversary of My Testicle Removal, I Summon My Inner Dr. Seuss

It’s hard to believe that it has already been five years

Since I returned from an appointment, shedding some tears

I had heard one of the worst sentences of all:

“It’s cancer, Justin, in your left ball.”

From there, everything just happened so fast

Surely it would be done soon, this just couldn’t last

A snip, a scan, another trip to the doc

Chemo ahead: my life heading into gridlock

But I made it through and I’m still here

And I want to focus on the past year

One year ago, my life was a giant mess

I felt defeated, alone, and full of distress

Looking back, I see now that I had hit rock bottom

But things are much better come this year’s autumn

The happiest I’ve ever been, I would have to say

And I’m always grateful to have lived another day

I continue to be in good health, minus one bone 

A summer foot surgery has kept me quite prone

It has put quite a damper on my exercise

But giving it time to heal is most wise

My mental health is also doing much better 

Still doing regular therapy – I’m a go getter

Earlier this year, I chose to stop taking my Prozac

And I’m happy to report no depression came back

Last year, I had just adopted two kittens

And now they like to be as snuggly as mittens

This June, I started a brand new career

Like I said, it’s been quite the big year

Probably the biggest change was finding God

To anyone who knows me, that may have seemed odd

Yet it was the one thing that I needed in my life

It saved me from all the despair and the strife

Getting to year five seems like such a big deal

Throughout this journey, there’s been so much to feel

Many ups and downs and I know it’s still the beginning

But getting another chance at life, well, I’d call that winning

As I end this and wrap it up here,

Reflecting on the passing of another year,

I’m so thankful to be out of a bad rut

Though I’m still waiting til I regrow another nut.