“We Will Always Love You”

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Dear Dolly,

On May 12, 2023, I trekked to Pigeon Forge from my home in Asheville with my two adult children for the opening day of Big Bear Mountain, the newest roller coaster. I’ve been taking them to Dollywood since they were small tots. It was the perfect choice for a quick getaway before I embarked on a challenging regimen of chemo for early-stage triple negative breast cancer detected on my annual mammogram. Facing so many unknowns, I knew I wanted to retreat to the familiarity of Dollywood for comfort, a sense of normalcy, and family bonding.

We spent the picture-perfect day celebrating our love of Dollywood, riding rides, eating the famous cinnamon bread made fresh daily at The Grist Mill and other good food, shopping, and even catching a glimpse of you, who I refer to as “Mountain Royalty.” I have ancestry that goes back to Sevier County, where you grew up, so I feel a special kinship with you even though later generations of my family migrated to Western North Carolina, where I was born and raised. 

As we left at the end of the day through the Emporium, I instinctively knew I wanted to buy shirts emblazoned with your beautiful face to try to absorb your positive energy and to have a visible reminder of striving to be as good a person as you are. A cancer diagnosis clears a lot of mental clutter and makes one focus on what’s important in life, and there’s nothing more important than being kind to others. You are my mentor for that. I’ve long been a fan of your music, your movies and your theme park, but more importantly my heart soars at those multi-millions of books given freely through your Imagination Library to help children learn to read, and your generosity in countless ways including providing resources for families who lost so much during the Gatlinburg fires in 2016, and donating a million dollars to vaccine research during the pandemic.

I bought several shirts and started wearing them, and then friends sent me some Dolly shirts as well. What happened next surprised me.

Everywhere I go—and that’s no exaggeration, it’s literally everywhere—people strike up a conversation about the shirt I’m wearing and that leads to a longer conversation about you. No one ever comments on my clothing except for these shirts. Dolly, you are the great unifier. In a country that seems divided on everything, there’s one thing that everyone agrees on—their love for you. I have had several conversations where you’ve been dubbed the greatest human being on the planet today. People from all walks of life stop me on the street, in the grocery store, in the Cancer Center waiting room, at my acupuncture clinic, at restaurants, and basically anywhere I am to comment on the shirt and then talk about what they love about you. I think you should run for president, and I’m not kidding. I love wearing my VOTE DOLLY t-shirt.

I’m inspired by the way you stay relevant and continually re-invent yourself, whether you’re writing songs for the Rockstar Album, singing with Jimmy Fallon during a Christmas show, or joining Goddaughter Miley Cyrus for a New Year’s Eve special. You appeal to all generations. 

I also love how you are continually developing plans for new projects. I recently read that you want to start a line of wigs—I could sure use one of those right about now to cover my balding head.

I’m writing this letter to you because it’s so important for me to express my overflowing gratitude to you. My new wardrobe association to you is helping me heal in an unexpected way. When people comment on the shirt I’m wearing, I tell them I’m drawing on positive Dolly vibes while going through chemo. The responses of encouragement and prayers are genuine and heartfelt, and it gives me an energetic boost that I can feel.

I’m on curative-intent chemotherapy, to be followed by surgery and then radiation. It can be daunting at times, but you can bet you’ll be accompanying me to all of these appointments by way of these shirts with your image on them. And I’ll be soaking in all your positive energy.

Dolly, I will always love YOU!

With gratitude,

Marla