Cancer survivors were holding their sides and wiping their eyes last Wednesday evening at the annual Survivors' Banquet before the Relay For Life. The 145 survivors, and even more caregivers, couldn't stop laughing as keynote speaker Anita Cummings delivered her philosophy of life as a cancer survivor.
And she had them loving her before she even got to the microphone. As she approached the podium, Mrs. Cummings said "Y'all need to clap for me before I start, because you may not give it to me after. Come on, come on, clap. Clap some more," she waved her arms and smiled.
Mrs. Cummings told her audience when she learned she was to be the speaker, she thought about sharing her cancer story with them, but she knew they all shared the same story. Instead, she said she'd talk about faith, family and friends.
"Don't just say God bless everybody," the Thomson Elementary principal said. "Say God bless Anita Jean Cummings. And don't just say Anita, because there's a lot of those out there. I am a colon cancer survivor."
Throughout her chemo treatments, which she still is undergoing, Mrs. Cummings said she often wondered how one can kill cancer cells without killing the body or the soul. She went on to talk about the miracles of life, and her love to Jesus for his pain and suffering on the cross. If the Son of God had to experience pain in His life, she asked what made her think she was any better and not have to experience pain, also.
Staying true to her promise to talk for only 12 minutes - "and if your neighbor falls asleep, elbow them," - Mrs. Cummings quickly went on to her second topic.
"Family and friends are just like fudge. Sometimes they're sweet, but some are a little nutty," she said. "But I don't care how poor you are, if you have the support of family and friends, you are rich indeed."
When talking about her husband, Matthew, and sons, Ty and Marcus, and how they've been with her all along the way, Mrs. Cummings said "I do not have cancer. We have cancer."
But the support doesn't stop there. Mrs. Cummings said her Thomson Elementary School family have been "more than supportive in every way," as has everyone in the community.
"When it comes to this community and someone finds out they have cancer, the love comes showering in," she said. "If you have cancer and you are alone, I know it is only because you choose to be. There's no need to be alone, because in McDuffie County, this is a strong, supportive family."
But even loving, supporting people sometimes don't know the appropriate thing to do when they encounter someone with cancer. Mrs. Cummings said many people don't know what to say when they see her, and they end up saying the wrong thing. She gave examples, which she entitled, The Wrong Things to Say to Me: "You know, my aunt died from colon cancer." ... "Oo-oo, you are getting so fat." ..... "You don't look as bad as I thought you were going to look."
"I just have to keep my mouth shut because Jesus is in me," she said defiantly. "If you know somebody negative and you see them coming, you need to turn around and run the other way. Because they can get you down, and it takes a lot of work to get back up again."
Holding up a t-shirt someone had given her that said, "This time, cancer picked the wrong Diva," Mrs. Cummings talked about the importance of positive thinking and never giving up. Since she's had cancer, Mrs. Cummings said she has "slowed down more," in a good way. She takes time to enjoy life, read her Bible and pray more.
"My cancer is a blessing," she said. "God didn't give it to me, but He just picked this body to carry it. And because He did, He's making this body stronger. So, He must have a greater purpose for me to do, and I can't wait to see what it is."
