How My Cancer Journey Leads Me on a Mediator's Path
My journey through cancer treatment, multiple surgeries, hospitalizations and recovery from chemotherapy, provided a profound counterpoint to the analytical world I’ve inhabited for over 35 years as a practicing attorney. The two experiences (one as a patient and one as a lawyer), seemingly disparate, actually intersect in revealing ways, offering lessons about resilience, perspective, and the nature of control.
My legal career has always been about structure, argument, and the careful application of logic to the chaotic facts of human experience. You prepare for every contingency, research every angle, and strive for a predictable outcome within the bounds of the law. I became comfortable in that world of ordered thought and strategic foresight.
Then came the diagnosis. The world I knew, with its neat case files and calculated arguments, dissolved into the raw, unpredictable reality of cellular malfunction and systemic treatment. Cancer does not operate on a legal schedule; it respects no deadlines or motions to dismiss. The control I cherished as a lawyer was an illusion in the face of this biological adversary. Chemotherapy, in particular, was a master class in relinquishing control. The physical toll and the mental fog were variables I could not litigate away or negotiate around.
This bout with serious illness taught me that true strength isn't about avoiding the storm, but about enduring it. It shifted my perspective from tactical victory in a courtroom to simple perseverance in everyday life. My legal training helped me to try to be analytical and tenacious, to try to ask the right questions of my doctors and research the best treatment paths, much like I would investigate a complex case. But, the difference was that the "client" was suddenly me, and the stakes were existential. I was too out of it, too shell shocked, too weary and too scared to think straight. I thank God every day that my family was there to step in for me to act as my advocates. I give profound thanks to my skilled doctors and nurses, although I have to admit it was a love/hate relationship at times with medical providers, through no real fault of theirs!
The greatest lesson, however, is about compassion, family and faith. In law, it’s easy to become adversarial, to see every interaction as a battle of wills or a clash of principles. The vulnerability of illness broke through that professional armor. When you are a patient, you are stripped bare of titles and status. You are just a human being in need of care. This has fundamentally changed how I interact with clients, opposing counsel, and the world at large. I find I listen more intently now, recognizing the inherent fragility and the often hidden struggles in everyone around me. I pray more. I value my friends and family more.
It has also fueled my desire to more actively emphasize my role as a mediator, a peacemaker if you will. Through perseverance and survival, as well as through the Lord's mercy and blessing, I have gained new insights that will make me a much better and more "patient" listener, which is ultimately what a mediator needs to be good at doing.
By the Grace of God, these dual paths—the rigorous, structured path of a long legal career and the unpredictable, humbling path of a cancer survivor—have taught me that life requires both tenacity and adaptability. We need the structure to function, but we need the humanity and spiritual faith to truly live. It is a powerful, ongoing realization that the most important position paper I will ever write is the story of my own life, not defined by the victories won in court, but by the quiet resilience found in moments of profound vulnerability and prayer.
James L. Williams