i'm a day late. and usually not a big birthday person. even as a child (though véry fond of the presents it presented - see what i did there) i liked the pagentry of it, dressing up and the cake, but would agonise over having to take phonecalls (yup pre-cell phone/SMS/whatsapp days-of-yore áctual phóne cálls) and speak to people wishing me happy birthday and having to stand and smile awkwardly while a large group of people your mum invited sing Happy Birthday To You. loudly. 😂 but it's been a year to say the least. and last year, i was still in hospital recovering from my double masectomy and an increasingly bad pethadine reaction which forced me to stay there far longer than i originally thought; on my birthday. so this year - and i expect for however many i still have left - i will try to do more to celebrate them, the way i love them best, surrounded by a small circle of family and friends, my people; those who i love the most. and cheer the fact that i'm still here. that i did it. that i gét to have a birthday. and that i did a good job not dying. *an incredibly huge thank you to the angels @charlysbakery who managed to whip up this incredible cake for me at the 11th hour; thank you so so much 🙏🏻💗💚💙❤💛 an even bigger thank you to my family, my friends and so many who held me through this time. and most of all, thank you to my jannie-karnallie who held my hand, and stayed for it all, through it all. i'm so thankful and my heart feels so so full. #GoodJobNotDying #FuckCancer #SugarIsBadForYou #HappyBirthdayToMe #38Baby #surviving #triplenegativebreastcancer #cancer #getchecked #chemocurls #bookthatmammo #earlydetectionsaveslives