Undergraduate / UC prompt #2 The bitter yet sweet taste of Prednisone [11]

Can someone read my prompt and give me an opinion about it? I will take in any suggestion, I think I can improve this a bit more. Thanks and happy Thanksgiving!

Tell us about a personal quality, talent, accomplishment, contribution or experience that is important to you. What about this quality or accomplishment makes you proud and how does it relate to the person you are?

In 2003, I was diagnosed with leukemia. It took awhile for me to cope with my illness, but eventually I came to accept it. However, I could never cope with the drugs I had to take. I hated the drug, Prednisone, with a passion. This drug was taken orally, and I could never stand the taste. The chalky, bitter taste would linger in my mouth for a while. After the first month, my chemotherapy dosage increased. I had to take in more Prednisone along with other drugs. I hated Prednisone so much that I stopped taking it. This action caused quite a lot of conflict; however, the result taught me a valuable lesson.

When it was time for a checkup, my oncology nurse, Onica, saw the bottle of Prednisone was still filled up. She asked why I was not taking it. For the brief moment, I could not answer. I knew telling her the taste was going to be a silly explanation. Eventually, I did. Onica suggested that I take the drugs with chocolate pudding. Onica then told my mother about the situation. My mother did not know about this, not that she was not a caring mother.

When we got home, my mother and I had an argument. My temper just went out of control and I said the most stupid thing ever to upset her. I told her, "Why bother taking it? I'm going to die anyways." She burst in tears and left my room. When my brother-in-law heard the commotion, he came in and asked why my mother was crying. He lectured me for a few minutes about how my mother really loves me and that I should stop acting the way I did. He asked if I could tell her I was sorry, and that I should give her a hug to show my appreciation. I knew my pride and stubbornness was going to hold me back. I thought to myself, "There's no way I can do that." He left the room when he called my mother in. But I knew he was watching in the background. I knew I had to swallow my pride and stop being stubborn for once. I gave her a hug and said I was sorry. My mother said it was all right and that she understood what I was going through. Suddenly, I realized it was me who do not understand what I was going through. I was taking everything for granted.

The next day, I begin to put Prednisone into chocolate pudding. I swallowed the Prednisone, the bitter taste, yet noticed a sweet contrast of chocolate pudding. I realized that reality was like this experience. Life can be bitter or sweet at times, but no matter what you go through, you cannot take your experiences or the people in your life for granted. That is what I decided to do from then on.