All I want for Christmas... is a cure for cancer

Like most children, I loved Christmas growing up. It was a magical time and the anticipation of receiving all the gifts you asked for was fantastic. Christmas took on a bit of a somber tone for me when my grandfather passed very close to the holiday when I was 10. It still was magical, but just a smidge of sorrow was mixed in too. Of course as I grew older, stopped believing that Santa was real and generally shed that wide-eyed, glistening innocence of my childhood... Christmas changed a bit too.

I know that some people just love this time of year. As the year draws to a close and I start to focus on the new year that is coming... I find myself thinking about people that I miss, friends and family members that may have passed on during the year... and it gets sad for me.

I know that cancer isn't the only disease in the world that wrecks lives and changes the trajectory of life for those afflicted and affected. However, cancer is so far-reaching and widespread that it is difficult to take two steps without running into someone whose life has been affected and changed by it. Right now, I have a list of people that I pray for daily because they or someone they love is fighting this disease. The list seems to grow each month and it bothers me that we just don't have enough answers.

So... for all of you with the hotline number to Santa Claus... can you help me get a wish to him?

All I want for Christmas is a cure for cancer.

I really have been a good girl this year... Promise.