Save Me : The Secret We Know by Tom Stabels

The Memories Project invited me to do an illustration which is inspired by the beautiful short story The Secret We Know by Tom Stabels.
I deeply fall in love with the following part of the story and tried to catch up the feelings of it; understandment, helping, saving and intimate.

"...Slowly, deliberately, she cuts. In that moment, the cancer becomes more than a word or diagnosis; it has shape and effect now. Crunch. It even has a sound. I ask if she’s okay and she nods, blanketing any tears under closed eyes and tight lips. When she opens her eyes again, she carries on, looking in the mirror and tilting her head. The oncologist told her she would lose her hair. She told herself she would get there first.

I put the clippers to what remains of her tousles. I know she’s looking at me in the mirror to see if I’m okay. She pays no attention to the hair that falls to the ground like ash. Unexpectedly, this moment is as tender as any kiss we have shared; perhaps even more intimate than any touch we could ever have dreamt up. Strip after strip I shave, exposing her head to the cold air for the first time since being born...."