The Danger of Autopilot I’ve driven the same route to the grocery store for years. My hands move without much thought. Turn signal, brake, accelerate; my body knows the sequence so well my mind drifts. One Tuesday, a deer burst into the road from the right. I yanked the wheel left. Pure reflex. I made…
Read moreTag: Be Present
Morning Routine: What Abilities You’re Taking For Granted (Post-Cancer Focus)
The alarm rings. I hush it without opening my eyes. My feet find the floor, steady and familiar. I stand, I walk, I flip a switch, light appears. I’ve done it so often that I barely notice. That fading is normal. It’s also a kind of forgetting. For many of us touched by cancer, courage…
Read moreThe Lost Art of Watching Clouds Without Taking a Picture
Right before an appointment, you might step outside just to feel air on your face. After chemo, you might sit in the car for a minute longer than you planned, not ready to go back inside. On the hardest days, even walking to the mailbox can feel like climbing a hill. And then you notice…
Read moreFrom Pain to Purpose
From Pain to Purpose Seven years ago, I didn’t choose this path. Cancer showed up on my doorstep, uninvited and unwelcome. It wasn’t a teacher I asked for, and I won’t call it a gift. Today, after seven straight years of treatment, I face a hard truth: the very thing I tried to escape shaped…
Read moreThe Power of Presence: Truly Tasting Your Food Again
I slipped into a habit I didn’t notice at first. My phone became a dinner companion. I’d sit down with a meal I’d taken time to make, and within seconds I’d be scrolling through something, anything, while I ate. Yesterday, I went out to lunch and left my phone in the car. I sat down…
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