I Didn’t Think I’d Make It to 30

Today, I am 30.

At 28, I was diagnosed with cancer. The mutation was rare and aggressive. The internet gave me an 8% chance.

I am writing this 1 year, 9 months, and 12 days after the bone marrow transplant that gave me a second chance.

A friend called a few weeks ago and asked what I was doing for my birthday. I told him nothing — I've always kept it low-key. He said:

"What?! Look at everything you've been through. You have to do something."

It got me thinking.

When you go through something like cancer, you become very aware of time. You sit in waiting rooms and suddenly the quiet mornings matter. The ordinary conversations. The simple fact of waking up healthy. You don't appreciate those things by having them — you see them clearly only when they are taken away.

The strange thing about taking life for granted is that it never feels like that's what you're doing. It just feels like another day.

Until something changes.

And suddenly you realize how many ordinary days were actually worth appreciating.

Here's the honest truth: even after everything, I still catch myself falling back into the old habits. Waking up like it's guaranteed. Moving through the day like it isn't a gift. Letting the ordinary feel ordinary.

I moved through so much of my life without really being there for it. I don't want to live like that anymore.

Not because every day needs to feel extraordinary. Most days won't. But because there's a difference between a life you're present for and a life you're just getting through.

So yes, I'm celebrating today. But my real goal is to celebrate every day that comes after.

The walk to my favorite coffee shop. My body while I'm working out. A great meal. A trip somewhere new. Sleeping in my own bed. The fact that I can shower, tie my shoes, walk up stairs — without pain, without losing my breath. The quiet mornings. The people I love.

These are the moments I want to cherish now.

Because I know now how fragile ordinary life really is.

And how lucky we are when we get to keep living it.

Not just on your birthday.

Cheers to 30