Dear Diana,


"A woman is like a tea bag—you can't tell how strong she is

until you put her in hot water."

~ Eleanor Roosevelt



Since its inception in 1985, I've advocated October as Breast Cancer Awareness Month. While every day and every month should bring health awareness, it's powerful to have one month dedicated to what affects one in eight women at some time in their life. This amounts to 13% of the female population in the United States.


As a woman afflicted by breast cancer twice (2001 and 2024), I am only too aware of the ramifications. As a former nurse, I've always been diligent about my health and medical appointments, yet both of my cancer bouts have taken me by surprise even though I was getting annual mammograms. But the good news is that they were both caught early enough so as not to be fatal. Treatment was not easy, but it saved me. So for me, early detection was the key.


There is no history of breast cancer in my family, but in addition to proper health care maintenance, what my journey has also taught me is the importance of self-care and nurturing the part of us that needs it the most. Anecdotally, stress has played an important part in my pre-cancer journey, so now especially, I make it a point to do at least one self-care activity a week. While I've not wanted to make cancer my identity, I still do want encourage both women and men to be diligent about their health care. We are blessed to be living in a world where modern medicine is, for the most part, available to us. And yes—men too. A good family friend, who is male, was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. Thankfully, he was also diagnosed early enough for successful treatment.


Here's to your good health!


OCTOBER Writing Prompts
  • Write about a health issue you've dealt with.
  • Write about someone you know afflicted by breast cancer.
  • Write about your self-care activities.
  • Write about your favorite healing book.
RECENTLY PUBLISHED WORKS


"Are You Affected By Intergenerational Trauma?" (article). The Good Men Project. August 29, 2024.


"Shaped By Our Childhoods." (article). Pink Panther Magazine. September 8, 2024.


"My Grandchildren’s Eyes," and "Beginnings." (poems). Sparks of Calliope. September 16, 2024.



"The Psychology of Rumi's Poetry." (article). The Good Men Project. September 19, 2024.


"Suicide On My Mind." (article). Medium. September 25, 2024.


"Suicide On My Mind." (article). The Good Men Project. September 26, 2024.

RECENT INTERVIEWS

"Interview with Maggie Langrick: 'Hummingbird: Messages from My Ancestors'." Selfish Gift Podcast. August 21, 2024.


"Interview with Tina Conroy: 'Hummingbird: Messages from My Ancestors'."

Intuitive Woman Podcast. September 3, 2024.

UPCOMING APPEARANCES

November 3, 2024

12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.



Writing Workshop Series:

"Day of the Dead: Remembrance of Loved Ones"

Mystic Journey Bookstore

2923 Main Street

Santa Monica, CA



Click here to register

RECOMMENDED BOOK

How to Know A Person by David Brooks (nonfiction)


This is not normally the type of book I'd pick up, but it was referenced at a beloved's memorial lately, and I was captivated by its concept. Brooks claims that there are basically two types of people—illuminators and diminishers—and the personality type is self-evident. The illuminators are curious about people and ask big questions, while diminishers make people feel small and unseen. Illuminators make people feel treasured as c0-workers, citizens, lovers, spouses, and friends. These are the people we feel good to be with.


He writes about how kids are not afraid to ask questions: between the age of two and five they might ask as much as 40,000, but something happens in late childhood and adolescence where, he asserts, they might withdraw from intimacy. Through his own study, he said that only 30% of adults are comfortable asking questions, that people love sharing their stories, and if we listen, we can detect a life pattern or story line running through it. This is an interesting observation, as I often tell my memoir students something similar—that we all have patterns and themes in our lives, and in getting to the core of memoir writing, we need to figure out what ours are.


Overall, this was a fascinating read where I highlighted many passages which will be useful for future intimate discussions.

MY DAILY OM WRITING COURSES

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