Athena Orchard was only 13-years old when she passed away at her home in Leicester, England from a cancer called osteosarcoma on May 28.

She left behind her grieving parents, six sisters and three brothers. She also left behind a 3,000-word-long secret note written with a black marker at the back of a mirror in her bedroom.

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That lengthy message to her family was only recently discovered by her father, Dean. The secret message and a box of self-penned songs detail the innermost feelings of a teenager who fought the most courageous battle of her young life.

Dean said this of his daughter's message: "She never mentioned it, but it's the kind of thing she'd do. She was a very spiritual person, she'd go on about stuff that I could never understand--she was so clever."

The messages, which are so profound for someone so young, are heartbreaking. But it shows a girl courageous enough to face death calmly and who acknowledged that love indeed does make one's existence, however short, truly worthwhile.

Here are a few of Athena's inspiring words:

"Love is rare, life is strange, nothing lasts and people change. Every day is special, so make the most of it, you could get a life ending illness tomorrow so make the most of every day. Life is only bad if you make it bad."

"If someone loves you, then they wouldn't let you slip away no matter how hard the situation is. Remember that life is full of ups and downs."

"Happiness depends upon ourselves. Maybe it's not about the happy ending, maybe it's about the story.

"The purpose of life is a life of purpose. The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra."

"Happiness is a direction not a destination. Thank you for existing. Be happy, be free, believe, forever young. You know my name, not my story."

"You have heard what I've done, but not what I've been through. Love is like glass, looks so lovely but it's easy to shatter."

"Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about. I want to be that girl who makes the bad days better and the one that makes you say my life has changed since I met her!"

"Love is not about how much you say I love you - it's about how much you can prove it's true. Love is like the wind, you can feel it but you can't see it. I'm waiting to fall in love with someone I can open my heart to."

"Love is not about who you can see spending your future with, it's about who you can't see spending your life without ... Life is a game for everyone but love is the prize. Only I can judge me."

Caroline, Athena's mother, said the family is "keeping the mirror forever, it is a part of her we can keep in the house, it will always be in her room. Just reading her words felt like she was still here with us, she had such an incredible spirit." 

TagsAthena Orchard, British, teenager, Cancer, death