12 Truths For Awesome Living

Enjoy life, Have Fun: Anna says: "Before I got cancer, I was like, 'I'm gonna study hard and I'm gonna get straight A's.' But life is about having fun, too." The first time I had lunch with Anna, she'd just gotten back from a Lake Michigan dunes trip with some friends. Another time I was supposed to have lunch with her, we had to reschedule because her family had taken a spontaneous trip to the Colorado Rockies. Because of Anna's illness, fun times with friends and family have become extremely important.

Use Your Experiences to help others: Anna's currently studying psychology and desires to one day work with kids who have cancer. She's not waiting to get her degree to start helping, though. She's attended camps where she's touched the lives of many young cancer patients. She's also had several opportunities to speak at fundraising evens for children with cancer.

Admit it's Hard to feel good about Yourself sometimes: Anna says: "During my first cancer treatment, I lost all my hair and I lost 45 pounds. I was beyond skinny. I lost a lot of self-confidence during that time." Then there were the surgical tubes sticking out of her upper chest. And while the tubes are now gone, the scars remain. There's also the 13-inch red scar that runs across her stomach - where the surgeons removed a large tumor. During high school, guys seemed to distance themselves from her and when she'd look int he mirror she'd feel anything but pretty.

Why Looks Don't Really Matter: Anna says: "When you have cancer, you discover what's important in life. You find out that your looks don't really matter, especially when you look at the bigger picture. It was a hard lesson for me to learn, too. In high school, physical appearance was such a major thing. But really, it doesn't matter. It just doesn't matter.

Everyone Needs a Little Escape Now and Then: While Anna has done some reading to help her deal with her illness, she prefers to keep most of her non-school reading light and fun. Anna says: "I've read one cancer book, but I'm surrounded by cancer! I want to read books that are fun. For example, I've reread the entire Narnia fantasy series by C.S. Lewis."

Be Grateful: In the essay she shared with me, which was written as a letter to herself, Anna writes: "Don't view anyone as more fortunate [than you]. You just never know how their life, or yours will turn out. You have a wonderful, loving family and friends that will support you through all you do, so put your focus on them and the many ways you've been blessed."

Share God whenever You Can: Before she got cancer, Anna didn't talk to people about her faith. But now she realizes how important it is to tell others about God. Anna says: "I use my cancer experiences as a way to get into a conversation about things that are most important in life. When it comes to witnessing, I just have a lot more courage than I used to have."

Everybody Needs Friends Who Will Make You Laugh: While Anna has had some friends who talk to her about her illness, she has had other friends who are real uncomfortable with the "c" word. For Anna, that's OK: "I had a group of friends in high school I could just have fun with. No deep, serious conversations. They'd invite me to stuff and it was always a good time. It was actually nice not to have to talk to them about my cancer."

Choose to Fully Live: In her essay, Anna wrote these words to herself: "I have met only two kinds of cancer patients. Half become very bitter toward their disease and dwell on their misfortune because they think their world revolves around them and owes them something; they become very depressed. The other half of cancer patients do not ignore the fact that they are dying, but choose to take advantage of all that is good in life. They genuinely care others despite what is happening to them. When they become sad, they have a good long cry, but afterwards they decide there is nothing they can do about the situation, so they pick themselves up and take advantage of the life left in them. Become the second person, Anna! One of the most important choices you will make in life is the attitude you adopt. This determines the kind of person you'll be."

Sometimes Silence is Best: For the most part, Anna says the people her life know when to talk and when to just listen. But, then again, there are those who just don't know how to keep their mouths shut. Anna says: "When I lost all my hair, there was this one woman who saw me at church in my wig and said something like, 'Oh, your wig looks cute, but I liked your real hair better because it was curly.' People just said the stupidest things sometimes. They didn't mean to hurt me, but they did. Sometimes I'd stay home from church just because I didn't want to listen to people's comments and advice." Anna encourages you to be very slow to give advice, especially if you don't have the personal experience to back up your advice.

Apologize and MOVE ON: Anna says: "Try not to do stuff you'll regret later. But if you do make mistakes, forgive yourself and ask forgiveness from others and move on. Apologize and move on. Don't hang on to your guilt and regrets."

Love the Simple Things: In her essay, Anna wrote these words to herself: "Become away of the simple pleasures of life: a cup of warm soup that slides down your throat warming you from inside out. ...Relish every conversation; listen to others and seek to pry new truth from their words. Hunt for every detail of life like a child; you will find an awe that ... fills your whole soul with a wonder that calms you and gives you an uncomplicated peace."