Words

Cancer—
a word,
so many words,
once heard,
they resonate,
percolate,
like kernels bursting
in a fire too hot,
like gum balls shattering
against the teeth.

And still they circle,
but I stand steady.
They press in,
I press back.
Stronger, louder,
my heartbeat insists—
I am here,
I am more
than any word.