An unsentimental account of a young woman, Ann (Sarah Polley) who discovers at the age of 24 that she is suffering from cancer of the uterus and has only a few months to live. Ann has been living a modest life with her husband and two children in a trailer near her parents' home. Her mother (Debbie Harry) is coping with the fact that Ann's father (Alfred Molina) is serving a ten-year prison sentence. Ann quietly compiles a list of things she wants to achieve before her death, and decides to keep her illness a secret from her loved ones. Her goals include finding someone to care for her husband Don (Scott Speedman), recording birthday messages for her two daughters, and falling in love.