Last week marked the one-year anniversary of me waking up with a broken rib for no apparent reason. Of course, in the three weeks that followed, the pain in my left side led to the discovery that I actually had stage-four lymphoma.

A year later, I've had a biopsy, a medi-port installed in my chest, four CT scans, a PET scan, six heavy chemo treatments and untold numbers of needles stuck into my body for various reasons. I've gone from a fairly bleak outlook to cancer free. I've met incredible people on this odyssey, from amazing doctors to remarkable nurses dedicated to saving lives and fierce survivors who refuse to lose to this insidious disease.

A year after that broken rib, I'm stronger, more resolved than ever and determined to live life in a different way. I hate to think about where I would be if not for the broken rib, as I had shown no other signs of the massive levels of cancer that had invaded my body. And in a weird way, that cancer was a blessing of sorts because I have been given the opportunity to refocus my priorities and take my life in a better direction.

The past year has been an incredible combination of surreal and amazing.