Before leaving this
world, dying 27-
year-old Holly
Butcher gave the
rest of us some powerful advice in her
‘Note Before I Die.’
We all know death is inevitable. And yet,
we don’t expect it to come so early for
many of us. Holly Butcher from New
South Wales in Australia certainly falls
into the category of “too young to die.”
Doctors gave Holly the terrible news when
she was just 26 years old. She suffered
from Ewing's sarcoma — a rare form of
cancer in and around the bones that
mainly affects young people.
The news completely blindsided Holly.
“It's a strange thing to realise and accept
your mortality at 26 years young,” she
wrote in the opening of her ‘Note Before I
Die.’ “It's just one of those things you
ignore. The days tick by and you just
expect they will keep on coming; Until the
unexpected happens.”
Holly’s diagnosis came as a shock to her
family, as well. The active, vibrant young
woman seemed to exude good health.
To hear she was living with a ticking time
bomb inside of her seemed impossible.
“She embodied good health,” Holly’s
brother, Dean, explained . “As a dietitian,
she ate all the right foods, she exercised
regularly and didn’t drink much alcohol.
But that’s the thing about cancer... it’s
non-discriminatory.”
Doctors gave Holly no hope. The stage 4
cancer had already spread to most of her
body and the outlook was grim.
Holly could have easily become bitter. But
this beautiful, young lady swallowed the
horrible news with grace. She worked hard
to make the most of the time she had left.
“She didn’t let it get the best of her,”
Dean says. “Despite the immense pain she
was in, there was always something she
looked forward to... throughout the whole
ordeal, she was just so tough and
resilient.”
Holly didn’t want to die. But rather than
fear it or run from the truth, she
surrendered to her fate and made the
most of it.
“I'm 27 now. I don't want to go. I love my
life. I am happy... I owe that to my loved
ones. But the control is out of my hands,”
she wrote.
It’s natural to pray for healing after
receiving this type of news. But by the
time Holly was 27, it became clear she
wouldn’t find her healing in this world.
And staring death in the face tends to put
things into perspective.
So, the thoughtful young woman sat down
to write a ‘Note Before I Die’ to all those
she was leaving behind. And in it, Holly
passed along some powerful advice for all
of us. Here are the key takeaways:
Life is a gift:
“I always imagined myself growing old,
wrinkled and grey- most likely caused by
the beautiful family (lots of kiddies) I
planned on building with the love of my
life. I want that so bad it hurts. That's the
thing about life; It is fragile, precious and
unpredictable and each day is a gift, not
a given right.”
Don’t sweat the small stuff:
“I just want people to stop worrying so
much about the small, meaningless
stresses in life and try to remember that
we all have the same fate after it all so
do what you can to make your time feel
worthy and great.”
Focus on the positive and let go of the
rest:
“Those times you are whining about
ridiculous things, just think about
someone who is really facing a problem.
Be grateful for your minor issue and get
over it. It's okay to acknowledge that
something is annoying but try not to carry
on about it and negatively affect other
people's days.”
Appreciate and take care of what you DO
have:
“I hear people complaining about how
terrible work is or about how hard it is to
exercise – Be grateful you are physically
able to... Appreciate your good health and
functioning body- even if it isn't your
ideal size. Look after it and embrace how
amazing it is. Move it and nourish it with
fresh food. Don't obsess over it.”
Live generously:
“Give, give, give. It is true that you gain
more happiness doing things for others
than doing them for yourself... Buy your
friend something kind... Use your money
on experiences... Or at least don't miss
out on experiences because you spent all
your money on material [things].”
Live in the moment and be present:
“Try just enjoying and being in moments
rather than capturing them through the
screen of your phone. Life isn't meant to
be lived through a screen nor is it about
getting the perfect photo... enjoy the
bloody moment, people! Stop trying to
capture it for everyone else.”
Don’t stay stuck:
“Remember, if something is making you
miserable, you do have the power to
change it – in work or love or whatever it
may be. Have the guts to change. You
don't know how much time you've got on
this earth so don't waste it being
miserable. I know that is said all the time
but it couldn't be more true.”
Holly offers plenty more words of advice,
so be sure to check out her full ‘Note
Before I Die’ on her Facebook page .
Holly’s family shared the powerful letter
just after Holly passed away. And her
words of wisdom spread like wildfire, with
over 150,000 shares.
Incredibly, Holly’s brother Dean had asked
his sister, just a few weeks before her
death, if she had any final wishes.
“She happily replied, ‘No. I was going to
live a simple life. I didn’t have big plans. I
just wanted to live happily.’ Those were
her exact words because I recorded the
conversation so I could listen to her voice
afterward,” Dean explained. “It is therefore
incredibly ironic, that a woman content
with life's simplicities... has had such a
huge impact. She left us with a powerful
message that has resonated with people
from all walks of life and from all corners
of the globe. That will always be her
legacy.”
We so often lose sight of just how blessed
we are for each moment of life. God’s
mercies are new every morning and each
day is an opportunity to do good. In
Holly’s honor, let’s all make today count!
world, dying 27-
year-old Holly
Butcher gave the
rest of us some powerful advice in her
‘Note Before I Die.’
We all know death is inevitable. And yet,
we don’t expect it to come so early for
many of us. Holly Butcher from New
South Wales in Australia certainly falls
into the category of “too young to die.”
Doctors gave Holly the terrible news when
she was just 26 years old. She suffered
from Ewing's sarcoma — a rare form of
cancer in and around the bones that
mainly affects young people.
The news completely blindsided Holly.
“It's a strange thing to realise and accept
your mortality at 26 years young,” she
wrote in the opening of her ‘Note Before I
Die.’ “It's just one of those things you
ignore. The days tick by and you just
expect they will keep on coming; Until the
unexpected happens.”
Holly’s diagnosis came as a shock to her
family, as well. The active, vibrant young
woman seemed to exude good health.
To hear she was living with a ticking time
bomb inside of her seemed impossible.
“She embodied good health,” Holly’s
brother, Dean, explained . “As a dietitian,
she ate all the right foods, she exercised
regularly and didn’t drink much alcohol.
But that’s the thing about cancer... it’s
non-discriminatory.”
Doctors gave Holly no hope. The stage 4
cancer had already spread to most of her
body and the outlook was grim.
Holly could have easily become bitter. But
this beautiful, young lady swallowed the
horrible news with grace. She worked hard
to make the most of the time she had left.
“She didn’t let it get the best of her,”
Dean says. “Despite the immense pain she
was in, there was always something she
looked forward to... throughout the whole
ordeal, she was just so tough and
resilient.”
Holly didn’t want to die. But rather than
fear it or run from the truth, she
surrendered to her fate and made the
most of it.
“I'm 27 now. I don't want to go. I love my
life. I am happy... I owe that to my loved
ones. But the control is out of my hands,”
she wrote.
It’s natural to pray for healing after
receiving this type of news. But by the
time Holly was 27, it became clear she
wouldn’t find her healing in this world.
And staring death in the face tends to put
things into perspective.
So, the thoughtful young woman sat down
to write a ‘Note Before I Die’ to all those
she was leaving behind. And in it, Holly
passed along some powerful advice for all
of us. Here are the key takeaways:
Life is a gift:
“I always imagined myself growing old,
wrinkled and grey- most likely caused by
the beautiful family (lots of kiddies) I
planned on building with the love of my
life. I want that so bad it hurts. That's the
thing about life; It is fragile, precious and
unpredictable and each day is a gift, not
a given right.”
Don’t sweat the small stuff:
“I just want people to stop worrying so
much about the small, meaningless
stresses in life and try to remember that
we all have the same fate after it all so
do what you can to make your time feel
worthy and great.”
Focus on the positive and let go of the
rest:
“Those times you are whining about
ridiculous things, just think about
someone who is really facing a problem.
Be grateful for your minor issue and get
over it. It's okay to acknowledge that
something is annoying but try not to carry
on about it and negatively affect other
people's days.”
Appreciate and take care of what you DO
have:
“I hear people complaining about how
terrible work is or about how hard it is to
exercise – Be grateful you are physically
able to... Appreciate your good health and
functioning body- even if it isn't your
ideal size. Look after it and embrace how
amazing it is. Move it and nourish it with
fresh food. Don't obsess over it.”
Live generously:
“Give, give, give. It is true that you gain
more happiness doing things for others
than doing them for yourself... Buy your
friend something kind... Use your money
on experiences... Or at least don't miss
out on experiences because you spent all
your money on material [things].”
Live in the moment and be present:
“Try just enjoying and being in moments
rather than capturing them through the
screen of your phone. Life isn't meant to
be lived through a screen nor is it about
getting the perfect photo... enjoy the
bloody moment, people! Stop trying to
capture it for everyone else.”
Don’t stay stuck:
“Remember, if something is making you
miserable, you do have the power to
change it – in work or love or whatever it
may be. Have the guts to change. You
don't know how much time you've got on
this earth so don't waste it being
miserable. I know that is said all the time
but it couldn't be more true.”
Holly offers plenty more words of advice,
so be sure to check out her full ‘Note
Before I Die’ on her Facebook page .
Holly’s family shared the powerful letter
just after Holly passed away. And her
words of wisdom spread like wildfire, with
over 150,000 shares.
Incredibly, Holly’s brother Dean had asked
his sister, just a few weeks before her
death, if she had any final wishes.
“She happily replied, ‘No. I was going to
live a simple life. I didn’t have big plans. I
just wanted to live happily.’ Those were
her exact words because I recorded the
conversation so I could listen to her voice
afterward,” Dean explained. “It is therefore
incredibly ironic, that a woman content
with life's simplicities... has had such a
huge impact. She left us with a powerful
message that has resonated with people
from all walks of life and from all corners
of the globe. That will always be her
legacy.”
We so often lose sight of just how blessed
we are for each moment of life. God’s
mercies are new every morning and each
day is an opportunity to do good. In
Holly’s honor, let’s all make today count!
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