Picture of the week - Friday 9th March 2018

March 9, 2018 by Leigh-on-sea.com

Picture of the week - Friday 9th March 2018

Our Picture of the Week is normally one of the beautiful little town that we love, but this week, it is of something, someone, so much more beautiful.... my dear friend Sammy x

In line with 'International Women's Day' yesterday, here is her story.... please share away! My true inspiration x

Sammy

"This isn’t an easy post for me to write or share so publicly, but somehow it feels right today. I want to empower women, educate women and make every woman out there stronger and in charge of their own destiny! #internationalwomensday. I hope you’ll take a few minutes to read this in the hope it could change a lifetime for a woman I know or you know. I won’t apologise for the personal nature of my post, but if it does offend you it’s probably best we aren’t friends anyway! Please read, share and act!

Dear Cervix
I’ve been writing you this letter in my head for a while now, during the silence when I’ve had time to collect my thoughts. In fact, since Friday 23rd Feb 2018 when I found out cancer had gate crashed our party and your cells were not your own. 37 years we’ve been together and in a few weeks we will say goodbye for the sake of you, me and the little girl and boy who call me Mummy.

I just wanted to say thank you. Thanks for delivering me my ‘Judy Blume - Are you there God it’s me Margaret’ moment on my 13th birthday, for giving me womanhood and my two beautiful babies. We didn’t quite make it there with one, but you bounced my gorgeous boy off that rainbow and erased all the heart ache and scars left behind. The truth is I’m not ready to say goodbye or end our journey, but my decision was an easy one in the end.

I’ve spent some time blaming myself for what I may have done or not done to cause this, but the truth is I don’t have an answer. From this point on I refuse to feel guilt, sadness or even anger, because in this moment I am grateful. Grateful for being a woman and having a cervix that gave me the ability of motherhood and grateful for having that routine smear test that I always dreaded. The smear test that caught a cancer growing inside you at the first stages and grateful that because of that smear I will get the chance to kick cervical cancer into touch for you, me and other women I know!

Sweet dreams Cervix you’ve done me proud! Xxx #foreverstrong#neverfearthesmear #iamme #iamwoman "

Please share and show your support for every woman you know and I love