In Our Own Words

About the Book

Cancer is a disease that devastates many families. It certainly devastated mine. On June 24th, 2006, my mother lost her nine-year battle with cancer. My family is now irreparably damaged. We have all been cheated out of so many moments we expected her to be a part of. My brothers and I have lost the most loving and sympathetic person in our lives. My father has lost his soul mate. My daughters and nieces have lost a future with their grandmother and will eventually lose their memories of her as well.

I realize I can’t replace my mother. I understand that my father may never reach the level of connection with another person that he found with my mom. I know my children and nieces will never share their first days of school, soccer games, or graduations with her. But the one thing I can do, in this sea of helplessness I am sinking in, is offer those children a picture of who their grandmother was. I can tell them the story of her fight. I can provide them a transcript of the nine years she spent battling, struggling, and surviving cancer. I want them to know her and love her as I have. And I want them to be inspired by her courage and determination.

In Our Own Words is my attempt to do this. My mother was kind enough to leave behind a journal detailing her treatments and triumphs, her setbacks and successes. She also saved years worth of notes and cards, to and from her, that exemplify the love she felt for us and we felt for her. And as she was dying and after her death, we received countless cards, notes, and emails from friends, family, acquaintances and near-strangers that were touched by her presence in their lives. In Our Own Words collects these records, organizes them and presents them for those who loved her, those who should have had the chance to love her, and those who may have never met her. To understand what she went through those nine years is to understand what a remarkable woman she was.

I have written In Our Own Words for my mother’s grandchildren. But her story can resonate with anyone who has ever been affected by a disease for which there is no cure. To read her story is to have a better understanding of what true courage is and to what lengths a person is willing to go to remain a part of this world.

About the Author

Mary C. Jackovin is the product of the marriage of Mary Lou and Gary Jackovin. Born in 1972, Mary has been a daughter, a sister, a wife, a teacher, and a mother in her 34 years. She now adds published author to that list of accomplishments. Inspired by the loss of her mother in June of 2006, Mary has assembled the written remnants of the last nine years of her mother’s life in her first book, In Our Own Words.