Faith and a Pen (Point #9)
Today I am grateful for a calm demeanor when those around me maybe aren't so calm. And I am grateful when the tables are turned and someone else's calm helps rein me in.
I also am grateful for two pieces of snail mail yesterday. One was a note from my friend Diane. Another was a letter from my friend Bonnie. I rarely get mail like that, then got two on the same day. Made my day x 2. Thanks!
Calm fits nicely with point of clarity #9: "Faith and a pen can trump fear and despair."
These points of clarity came out of looking at my experiences with a cancer diagnosis, treatment, and surgeries in the rear-view mirror. In retrospect, I realized what I already knew. Faith and a pen had helped me for a long time.
Faith to me means a belief in a power beyond myself, belief in a good force at work in the world. I typically call the source of my faith God or Higher Power. Names don't really matter to me, the trust and belief do. Faith assures me that I am not alone, ever. And when I have to face fears, I try to face them with faith. I don't have to have all the answers. I never will. I don't know what is in store for my loved ones or myself in the future. I have faith that I will have the support and strength to get through the tough times and the grace to fully appreciate the good times. Cancer certainly drove that point home loud and clear. A common mantra for me in those months was "Replace fear with faith." "Face fear with faith" works too.
Finding faith. Facing fear. These will continue for a lifetime.
I believed in the power of my pen before I believed in a power greater than myself. I started writing somewhere around age 12. I kept a diary and I wrote some poems. As I grew into my teen years my angst was compounded by my drinking. Self-hatred was ever-present and I was so tough on myself.It was then that I began putting some of that pain on paper and releasing it. As my drinking continued, as the downward spiral picked up speed, it was my writing, my poems, that helped stop the train wreck. Getting those toxic emotions out, from my heart through my pen, saved my life. I truly believe that.
By the time I was diagnosed with cancer, writing was a staple in my life. Thankfully, the toxic emotions have been long gone. But cancer brought a different set of difficult emotions with it. Despair wasn't frequent, but it was definitely lurking. I wrote about my fears, the changes my body was going through, the love and support I received. And I also wrote many details of appointments, tests, chemo, and surgeries. I am so glad I did that because my memory would not serve me as well as reading it on a journal page will.
Pen and paper. Words flowing. Healing and reflecting happening.
I also am grateful for two pieces of snail mail yesterday. One was a note from my friend Diane. Another was a letter from my friend Bonnie. I rarely get mail like that, then got two on the same day. Made my day x 2. Thanks!
Calm fits nicely with point of clarity #9: "Faith and a pen can trump fear and despair."
These points of clarity came out of looking at my experiences with a cancer diagnosis, treatment, and surgeries in the rear-view mirror. In retrospect, I realized what I already knew. Faith and a pen had helped me for a long time.
Faith to me means a belief in a power beyond myself, belief in a good force at work in the world. I typically call the source of my faith God or Higher Power. Names don't really matter to me, the trust and belief do. Faith assures me that I am not alone, ever. And when I have to face fears, I try to face them with faith. I don't have to have all the answers. I never will. I don't know what is in store for my loved ones or myself in the future. I have faith that I will have the support and strength to get through the tough times and the grace to fully appreciate the good times. Cancer certainly drove that point home loud and clear. A common mantra for me in those months was "Replace fear with faith." "Face fear with faith" works too.
Finding faith. Facing fear. These will continue for a lifetime.
I believed in the power of my pen before I believed in a power greater than myself. I started writing somewhere around age 12. I kept a diary and I wrote some poems. As I grew into my teen years my angst was compounded by my drinking. Self-hatred was ever-present and I was so tough on myself.It was then that I began putting some of that pain on paper and releasing it. As my drinking continued, as the downward spiral picked up speed, it was my writing, my poems, that helped stop the train wreck. Getting those toxic emotions out, from my heart through my pen, saved my life. I truly believe that.
By the time I was diagnosed with cancer, writing was a staple in my life. Thankfully, the toxic emotions have been long gone. But cancer brought a different set of difficult emotions with it. Despair wasn't frequent, but it was definitely lurking. I wrote about my fears, the changes my body was going through, the love and support I received. And I also wrote many details of appointments, tests, chemo, and surgeries. I am so glad I did that because my memory would not serve me as well as reading it on a journal page will.
Pen and paper. Words flowing. Healing and reflecting happening.
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