Living Well While Surviving Cancer
Live Life EVERY DAY!!
Have you given up yet? LOL
Yes, we have made it to January 9, 2020. 🙂 So, after 9 days (including today), how are we doing with our New Year’s resolutions?
For a humorous look at fulfilling New Year’s resolutions, check out the three images below.
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Food for thought!
Once again, it is my honor to assist David Fox in publishing a new free book of poetry. This is yet another example of what we can do regardless of our limitations.
David is a true inspiration. Despite being born with Cerebral Palsy and having suffered from mental illness in his 20’s, David has written poems for children and adults for over 20 years. His poetry has appeared in Bell’s Letters, Ceremony, Great South Bay Magazine, Humoresque, The Oak, Opossum Holler Tarot, Performance Poet’s Association Literary Review, Poetic Expressions, Poets’ Roundtable, Reflections, SMILE, Tale Spinners (Canada), Visions, Wanton Words, Whispers of Poetry and Write On!! Poetry Magazette. He is still a participant at UCP Long Island.
Click the image to access the new book. Note: A free, simple login is required. 🙂
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Let’s celebrate and look forward to a great 2020. 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
First, a funny quote.
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Live life every day!
As we look forward to the future, we need to be thankful for what we have. And not be unhappy for what we don’t have. Now, we offer our annual message. To embrace life and choose happiness in 2020.Â
As many of you may know, I am a VERY lucky survivor of pancreatic cancer. Thus, I am thankful each and every day to celebrate the blessing of life. On February 12, 2020, it will be five years since I had my successful Whipple surgery. My longevity is related to my embracing life and choosing happiness.
Only 7 percent of those diagnosed with pancreatic cancer survive for 5 years. Thus, I am both happy and sad.
Today, I want to share some FREE resources I have developed and tell my personal story. Why? To provide hope and serenity for anyone with a serious disease and their loved ones. We must never forget that our caregivers suffer and endure along with us.
Since recovering from my surgery and follow-up chemotherapy, I view my life’s mission as assisting others with a terrible illness. To me, this is a responsibility that I welcome as one of the relatively few long-term pancreatic cancer survivors. In my mind and heart, I MUST give back.
So, please take a look at these resources.
With this book, I want to share my personal cancer journey with you. I want to offer hope and support to those dealing with a terrible disease and their families. Why? To quote the late NY Yankee star Lou Gehrig when he was honored at Yankee Stadium while dying from ALS: “Today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth.”
The book is a hopeful, but realistic, view of my journey from diagnosis through treatment through return to work and my being able to walk my daughter down the aisle at her wedding. It has some humor and many quotes to ease the reading.
Click the book cover to download a FREE copy of the book. Then, share it with someone you love.
During the summer of 2018, I started a new blog to share health-related information and inspirational stories. It features infographics, videos, articles, and more. And despite the title, it relates to a wide range of health issues.
Click the image to visit the blog. Then, PLEASE sign up to follow us.
Finally, check out these resources. and sign up to join me Welcome aboard!
To help you relax and reflect, we add this post to the one yesterday.
Many thoughtful quotes.
In the United States, we are sometimes our own worst enemies. For example, see a post about our under-use of vacation time. But, it’s the season for happy holidays 2019. Enjoy your time with family and friends.Â
We hope these quotes make you more reflective. And do things to make others happy. Which in turn will make YOU happy.
Fred Rogers — “I like to compare the holiday season with the way a child listens to a favorite story. The pleasure is in the familiar way the story begins, the anticipation of familiar turns it takes, the familiar moments of suspense, and the familiar climax and ending.”
Kate Klise — “During the holiday season, it’s easy to forget that sometimes the best gift of all is simply the gift of time. I can’t think of anything a writer would appreciate more than being given time and space to work.”Â
Ainsley Earhardt — “Giving back to those in need is something that everyone on all sides of the political aisle can relate to. And it is beautiful to see people come together, especially during the holiday season.”
Geoff Stults — “The holiday season can be an especially trying time for our service men, women, and families. Military service and deployment create empty seats at holiday tables, religious services, and celebrations.”Â
We conclude with these wishes.
Be a friend indeed to someone in need.
Want to be a great friend? Check out this article from Emma Pattee, writing for the NY Times. Then, read the inspiring story after that.
“If you want closer friendships, the first step is to decide you’re going to do something about it. ‘We think about relationships as things that happen to us, but the truth is that we make them happen,’ psychologist Dr. Sue Johnson said. Getting closer to your existing friends requires making the time and being intentional.”
“Before we can attempt closeness, we need to have security. Through his research, Dr. Amir Levine (a psychiatrist and a neuroscientist)Â has identified the five foundational elements of secure relationships, which he refers to as CARRP.”
Consistency (Do these friends drift in and out of my life on a whim?)
Availability (How available are they to spend time together?)
Reliability (Can I count on them if I need something?)
Responsiveness (Do they reply to my emails and texts? Do I hear from them on a consistent basis?)
Predictability (Can I count on them to act in a certain way?)
Click the image to read a lot more from Pattee.
Good deeds sometimes get recognized in a big way. Consider this heartwarming story. As reported by Alexandra Deabler for Fox News:
“A Denny’s waitress is feeling very thankful after a generous couple of diners gifted her a car.
“Adrianna Edwards of Galveston, Texas, used to walk 14 miles a day to get to her job at the diner chain. The entire journey took her more than four hours. ‘You’ve got to do what you’ve got to do,’ Edwards said to KTRK of her long trek.”
“Edwards was in the process of saving to buy a car when a kind couple took matters into their own hands. The pair, who reportedly requested to remain anonymous, visited the restaurant last Tuesday morning for breakfast. It was then they learned of Edwards’ long trips to and from work each day.”
“After eating their meal, the couple left. Only to return hours later with the surprise of a lifetime — a 2011 Nissan Sentra they had just purchased, KTRK reports. The couple was happy to help Edwards out, but requested that she pay it forward to others in need, which the woman has said she intends on doing.”
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