Despair

By Bonnie Annis

September 10th, 2026

I painted this abstract on a day when I was feeling hopeless. I was tired of hurting all the time. Since diagnosis, I've struggled with side effects of lymphedema, which causes my arms to swell and ache.I don't have much range of motion because of the swelling and often, I feel very unattractive. I wear long sleeve shirts year round if I'm not wearing my compression sleeves. Although thankful to be alive, I wish I'd never had to have lymph nodes removed.