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Carson Daly shares 'goodbye' letter his mom wrote 20 years ago during cancer battle

Carson said his mother wrote the letter while she was battling breast cancer. She went on to live for nearly another 20 years.
/ Source: TODAY

Carson Daly has repeatedly described his late mother as a source of inspiration — and a recent discovery has added to his reasons why.

The TODAY anchor posted a picture of a handwritten letter his mother, Pattie Daly Caruso, wrote to her children nearly 20 years ago while she was undergoing cancer treatment.

"My sister & I just discovered this 'goodbye' letter Mom left in her desk drawer. It was written in the thick of her breast cancer battle. She clearly thought she might not make it," Carson wrote in the caption of the Instagram post.

"We never knew. This was 1998. She lived almost 20 years longer. She survived and thrived. Never give up. #PinkPowerTODAY"

Carson posted the image Wednesday, his first day back at work since his mother passed away on Sept. 17. She was 73.

In her farewell note to her children, Carson's mom urged him and his sister, Quinn, to take good care of themselves and each other.

"I'm so proud of you. Each of you have brought me so much joy! Walk closely with God and be faithful to His word," she wrote.

She also spoke about the kids they would have in the years ahead.

"Teach my grandchildren as you have been taught. Live each day and celebrate life — it's God's greatest gift!"

She ended the note making sure they knew how much they were adored.

"You can feel my love even now — know I am with you always. Your Mommy."

On TODAY, Carson said he's "still in shock" over the loss of his mother, but healing. He also sent his thoughts and prayers to the people who lost loved ones in the Las Vegas massacre.

He also discussed how he and his sister have been going through her belongings and joked about how all the items she collected because they served as reminders of her life events.

Carson has frequently discussed how motivated he is by the way his mother, whose first husband, Carson's dad, died at a young age from cancer, has overcome numerous obstacles in her life.

“Some people will say, it's not the cross — it’s how you bear,’’ Carson said in a 2013 segment about the people who inspire TODAY anchors. “Her life is a constant example for me of how to bear that cross.”