@Darlene155 When you make a reservation, you are agreeing to the cancellation policy that is used on that listing. If you need to cancel, you have to accept that you will be subject to whatever that cancellation policy is. You are the one who wants to cancel, so it is you who needs to do that, not the host.
You can't simply make a reservation, cancel it, and expect the terms of the cancellation to be waived. If you buy a non-refundable airline ticket, the airline won't just refund the money if you cancel it, because you knew what the policy was when you booked the ticket and agreed to it. This is no different..