My Granny Beat Cancer and I Was the Only One Who Celebrated with Her — I Taught My Family a Lesson

My sweet grandma fought bravely against cancer and won. I was overjoyed, but my heart sank when I realized I was the only one who showed up to celebrate with her. Utterly DISAPPOINTED with my family, I decided it was time to teach them a lesson they wouldn’t forget.

Hey folks, I need to get this off my chest. My grandma Rosie is a sweetheart.

All my life, I’ve grown up eating her delicious pies and plum cakes, listening to her sweet songs in the garden when she used to pluck flowers for my Grandpa’s grave we visited every weekend. She’s such a sweet person, my Rosie!

An older woman sitting on the porch on a warm evening | Source: Midjourney

But not every day is sunshine and rainbows, right? Everything changed when my granny was diagnosed with cancer. She’s been an angel, graciously fighting cancer for as long as I can remember.

“Ronnie, you know your grandma’s strong, don’t you?” Dad once said. “She’ll beat this, okay?”

I nodded, though my heart clenched. Seeing her in pain, trying to stay positive, was unbearable. Every chemo session left her weaker, yet she never complained. Her smile stayed bright, her spirit unbroken.

A young woman sitting outside a hospital ward | Source: Midjourney

“Grandma, are you okay?” I asked once, sitting by her side after a rough session.

She squeezed my hand, her eyes twinkling. “Don’t you worry, sweetie! I’m tougher than I look.”

I smiled back, but inside, I was breaking.

Some of my family members lost hope that Grandma Rosie would make it. Some offered silent prayers, and some, including my siblings, were waiting for Grandma Rosie to kick the bucket to have a peaceful death rather than endure all the pain and stress of chemo.

An older woman in hospital bed | Source: Midjourney

But I, her youngest granddaughter, Veronica, fought with all my hopes to save my Grandma’s life and grant her a little more time with us.

Then one day, a week ago, I got a call from the hospital. My prayers were miraculously answered. Grandma Rosie had her final day at the hospital, and by tradition, she was supposed to ring a bell that all cancer survivors get to ring.

“She did it,” the nurse said over the phone, her voice brimming with excitement.

A young woman on a phone call | Source: Midjourney

I felt tears welling up. “She really did it?”

“Yes, she’s ready to ring the bell,” the nurse replied.

I hung up and couldn’t stop smiling. My grandma had won the battle.

Grabbing Grandma Rosie’s favorite daisies, I bolted to the hospital. But when I approached her ward, I was shocked to see that no one from the rest of my family came. Not my parents, none of my siblings, not even Grandma’s other two children, my aunt and uncle.

An upset young woman holding white daisies | Source: Midjourney

I froze, tears threatening to spill over. Grandma had always gone above and beyond for this family. With a heavy heart and putting on a brave smile, I entered her ward with the flowers in my hand.

“Hi, Grandma,” I said, forcing cheer into my voice.

Her face lit up. “Ronnie, you came!” she exclaimed.

“Of course, I did,” I replied, handing her the daisies. “These are for you.”

Older woman with yearning in her eyes | Source: Midjourney

She took the flowers, her eyes misting. “Thank you, sweetie. Where is everyone else?”

I bit my lip, trying to hold back my emotions. “I’m sure they’re on their way, Grandma.”

“Ronnie, sweetie, oh, I’m so glad you came, honey. Where is everyone? Are they coming? I have to ring the bell, dear.”

The spark in my granny’s eyes tore me apart. How could I tell her that no one came and probably wasn’t going to come? I gently sat beside her and squeezed her hands, telling her that if no one came to visit, then they must be planning a surprise for her.

A sad young woman staring at her granny | Source: Midjourney

I know I lied. It stabbed my heart to lie to my granny. But seeing her smile like that, I couldn’t break her heart.

I grabbed my phone and texted my family’s group chat, asking where everyone was. The response moments later COMPLETELY SHOOK me.

“We’re all busy,” my dad texted back. “Can’t make it today.”

The response I got from the rest of the family was no different.

A young woman reading the texts on her phone | Source: Midjourney

Anger flared up inside me, but I kept my voice calm for Grandma’s sake. “Don’t worry, Grandma. We’ll celebrate together.”

My parents told me they were about to board their flight to Hawaii to attend someone’s wedding. Really? My uncle and aunt texted, saying they were at a party for someone’s baby shower.

And my entitled siblings (I know I shouldn’t be saying this about my own brother and sister), but they were hanging out with their friends, buying stuff for an all-friends vacation to Dubai.

An airplane ready for take-off | Source: Midjourney

LIVID doesn’t explain how furious I was at that point. Here was my Grandma, a brave old lady in her graceful 60s who survived cancer, and here were these people who literally FORGOT about her.

“Seriously?” I muttered, pacing the hospital corridor. “They can’t be bothered to show up for this?”

Grandma looked at me, concerned. “What’s wrong, Ronnie?”

“Nothing, Grandma,” I replied, forcing a smile. “Let’s get you ready to ring that bell.”

A disappointed young woman | Source: Midjourney

As soon as Grandma and I left the hospital in my car, I stopped at a café on the way and told my Grandma to wait in the car and promised to get her the best croissants and hot tea to celebrate.

While Grandma Rosie sat in the car, I hurried to the café and while waiting for my order, I decided to play a little trick with my family.

I texted on the family group chat with a little lie I’d fabricated and knew was wrong. But these entitled brats DESERVED such a cunning lesson.

A young woman texting on her cellphone | Source: Midjourney

So here’s what I did! I left a message, saying Grandma Rosie was going to the ER for last-minute unexpected reasons and asked everyone to Venmo me some money to take care of the hospital bills since I was the only family member with Grandma.

I anxiously waited for their response.

My phone buzzed with notifications. “Let us know if you need more,” my dad texted, transferring some cash to my account.

A young woman holding a smartphone | Source: Midjourney

I collected the croissants and tea and as I approached my Grandma in the car, my phone buzzed non-stop with bank notifications. Turns out my trick worked.

My uncle and aunt, and even my entitled siblings transferred some money, telling me to take care.

That’s it. My eyes lit up, and as my Grandma relished the hot croissants, I turned to her and asked with a big fat smile, “Grams, you know what? I’m in the mood for a little celebration. Shall we go shopping… then dinner at your favorite restaurant?”

A young woman turning to her grandma | Source: Midjourney

Grandma Rosie was so happy when I then told her I’d be taking her on a little vacation to the beachside resort in the next town—her favorite vacation spot where she and Grandpa had met all those years ago. Grandma Rosie was thrilled.

“That sounds wonderful, Ronnie,” she said, tears of joy in her eyes.

So, here’s what happened next. The very next morning, Grandma Rosie and I were at this beautiful seaside resort, sipping juice and basking in the sun.

An older lady admiring the beach | Source: Midjourney

My granny looked lovely. I snapped some cool pictures of us and posted them on my family’s group chat for everyone to see. Then BOOM!

I was bombarded with messages after messages, with my family calling me a LIAR and all sorts of names. The last straw was when my uncle told me I was a big-time swindler.

That’s it. My fingers flew over the phone screen as I sent a very BOLD reply on the group chat:

“YOU SELFISH LIARS! Don’t you dare call me a liar! You had all promised to congratulate Grandma on her victorious battle with cancer. But nobody showed up. You should be ashamed of yourselves.”

A woman texting on her cellphone | Source: Midjourney

Grandma looked at me, concerned. “What’s going on, Ronnie? Are you okay, dear?”

“Uh, nothing, Grams!” I lied and pocketed my phone as Grandma and I watched the sunset and the breathtaking sea.

I didn’t want to upset Grandma Rosie by telling her the truth that no one wanted to come to see her in the hospital and that everyone was so busy with their own work.

A sad younger woman looking at her grandma | Source: Midjourney

When Grandma thanked me for the surprise trip and asked me how I managed it all, considering I was just out of college and doing a part-time interior design gig, I lied to her.

I told her that everyone in the family, my parents, her son, daughter, and my siblings, had sent the money to sponsor our trip to help her relax and enjoy after such a difficult journey in the hospital.

Grandma Rosie, the sweet soul she is, believed me. It stung me, though.

A young woman feeling guilty | Source: Midjourney

“Thank you, Ronnie,” she said softly. “This means the world to me.”

So, we returned home from our wonderful little vacation just two days ago. No one was there at home, so it was kind of relieving. I thought my family members would forget what happened and just get over it and be happy for Granny Rosie.

Instead, my uncle called Granny that very evening and yelled at her, demanding his money back since she was not sick anymore. And not just that, he spilled the tea on how I got the money for the extravagant shopping and our little trip.

A man on a phone call | Source: Midjourney

The revelation left Grandma Rosie in shards and tears. She looked at me and asked just one question, “Veronica, honey, why did you do this?”

I couldn’t muster myself to talk further than saying, “Because I love you, Grandma. You deserve to be happy after everything you’ve been through…”

An anxious young woman | Source: Midjourney

Grandma Rosie pulled me into a tight hug, and just this morning, a lawyer knocked on our door, saying, “Hello Ms. Hanks. I’m here to speak with your Grandma, Mrs. Bernard. She’d called me to modify her will. Can I kindly see her?”

A lawyer outside a building | Source: Midjourney

My heart started to race as the lawyer sidled past me. The next thing I knew, Grandma told me to wait outside while she and our family lawyer disappeared into her study to modify the will.

I’m still confused about the drama that would unfold later but one thing’s for sure: my Grandma deserves to be happy and I would do anything to see her smile. If you were in my shoes, what would you have done?