Not My Mother’s Journey- Book Review

Not My Mother’s Journey by Heather St. Aubin-Stout had me absorbed from the beginning!  I found myself reliving my own breast cancer journey with tears, laughter, fear and finally freedom. Freedom that I am at peace with my decisions. The layman explanation of medical terminology was superb and she did not sugar coat the family scene. Each time they all had a glass of wine I found myself right there with them! On page 92, Heather made me realize that I was not the only one that said prayers of gratitude for those prayer warriors. I loved how the story brought us up close and personal into Heather’s life, the good and the bad!

-Katheryn Harlan

Though Healing Eyes is honored to partner with Heather and we are looking forward to the book signing on Thursday May 19th at Taste Full Beans in downtown Hickory. We hope you’ll join us in welcoming author Heather St. Aubin-Stout to Hickory over some wine, cheese, and an excellent read!

Morning Beach Mediation

I walk to the beach in my pjs & favorite blanket, sit on the cool sand, close my eyes & begin to meditate. Listening to the waves as they gently lap onto the shore I realize each one is making a different sound, just like my breath, each one is different & I can never get the last back, it’s gone. All I have is the present breath & the sound of the present wave. It’s getting light outside, I open my eyes and see the most beautiful sunrise. Varying hues of reds and oranges, peeping through the holes in the clouds, it looks like lace. It takes me back to my Grandmother’s linens w/ soft, worn holes that were slightly darkened around the edges, a warm happy feeling floods over me. I look toward the west, the sky remains dark, the duality of the sky, just like in yoga, the yin and yang, the effort and surrender. I begin to notice the coolness of the sand under my legs, the taste of salty air, the warm breeze on my skin, the gentle lapping of the waves. Is this why it is so easy to meditate on the beach??????? Why can’t it be this easy @ home on my mat? I stand to begin my walk back to the house, as I look in the westward sky, I see the Harvest Moon dropping low toward the sound, a big, beautiful , perfectly shaped round moon, cool, the sky below shows varying shades of pinks and lavenders. Again, the duality of life, the warm & cool, the east & west. I bow NAMASTE’ and marvel @the beauty of the universe. All I was hoping for when I walked to the beach was a quite meditation. I left with so much more, isn’t that always the way, when we least expect or maybe it’s that our minds are open & we allow ourselves to fully be present, in the moment.

Peaceful Blessings!

Healing Hearts. Healing Hands.

Ooo What is T.H.E. up to now?! We’re putting together all kinds of goodies for our November 20th workshop participants and we wanted to make sure you had the chance to sign up! Get details in the flyer below and sign up soon! We’ve already had several peeps sign up. Because, lets be honest, who wouldn’t want to go get their yoga on, have the chance to win lots of swag (Psst! I hear there might be jewelry), have a wine and tea tasting, AND make a donation to the most fabulous nonprofit ever!? That’s right! Your $35.oo goes straight to T.H.E. so that you can feel even better about taking some time out for you before the holidays! Wish I could tell you more, but we have to keep some surprises right?!  Namaste ❤

Oncology visit

SO……I go to my oncologist for my 7, yes 7 year check today & as I am sitting there I’m beginning to wonder what am I???? A Cancer Patient, Survivor, Healthy Cancer Patient? Is this the day I hear that I have a recurrence, am I healthy & taking up the Drs time, look @ all of these sick people, do I need to be here???????? am I being the best survivor I can be? I don’t need to be here, I’ve ridden 120 miles already this week & it’s not even the weekend when I do my long rides, I’ll easily get 160+ miles this week, I’ve taught 5 yoga classes & lifted weights x2, a cancer patient can’t do that.
They call me back, finger stick, wt & ht, all those are good, now to see the Dr……….I chatter senselessly to my husband while we are in the exam waiting…..no I’m not nervous,HA. In he comes, the DOCTOR, I always try to read their face to see the answers to my questions, but he is a pro @ hiding the info. GOOD NEWS!!!!!!! All tests & exams say I am healthy, YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!! WHOO HOO!!!
Happy Friday to me. So………..I am a cancer survivor, a 7 year survivor & yes I am the best survivor I can be……….. Think I’ll celebrate w/ a pomegranate martini ( @ least it’s healthy)
Will this change anything, no, I’ll continue to do my breast exams, exercise, eat healthy(most of the time) and spread the word that early detection does save live, continue to raise funds for THE and thank GOD each day for my health!!!!!!!!!
Happy 7 year anniversary to ME!

Dogs Know

A dear friend sent this to me & I wanted to share w/ each of you~~~~~~~~~~~ Enjoy your Day!

Lucky Dog….
Anyone who has pets will really like this. You’ll like it even if you don’t and you may even decide you need one!

Mary and her husband Jim had a dog named Lucky. Lucky was a real character. Whenever Mary and Jim had company come for a weekend visit they would warn their friends to not leave their luggage open because Lucky would help himself to whatever struck his fancy. Inevitably, someone would forget and something would come up missing.

Mary or Jim would go to Lucky’s toy box in the basement and there the treasure would be, amid all of Lucky’s other favorite toys. Lucky always stashed his finds in his toy box and he was very particular that his toys stay in the box..

It happened that Mary found out she had breast cancer. Something told her she was going to die of this disease….in fact; she was just sure it was fatal.

She scheduled the double mastectomy, fear riding her shoulders.  The night before she was to go to the hospital she cuddled with Lucky. A thought struck her…what would happen to Lucky? Although the three-year-old dog liked Jim, he was Mary’s dog through and through. If I die, Lucky will be abandoned, Mary thought. He won’t understand that I didn’t want to leave him!  The thought made her sadder than thinking of her own death.

The double mastectomy was harder on Mary than her doctors had anticipated and Mary was hospitalized for over two weeks. Jim took Lucky for his evening walk faithfully, but the little dog just drooped, whining and miserable.

Finally the day came for Mary to leave the hospital. When she arrived home, Mary was so exhausted she couldn’t even make it up the
steps to her bedroom.  Jim made his wife comfortable on the couch and left her to nap..

Lucky stood watching Mary but he didn’t come to her when she called.  It made Mary sad but sleep soon overcame her and she dozed.

When Mary woke for a second she couldn’t understand what was wrong.  She couldn’t move her head and her body felt heavy and hot. But panic soon gave way to laughter when Mary realized the problem. She was covered, literally blanketed, with every treasure Lucky owned!  While she had slept, the sorrowing dog had made trip after trip to the basement bringing his beloved mistress all his favorite things in life.
He had covered her with his love.

Mary forgot about dying.  Instead she and Lucky began living again, walking further and further together every day. It’s been 12 years now, and Mary is still cancer-free. Lucky, he still steals treasures and stashes them in his toy box but Mary remains his greatest treasure..

Remember……live every day to the fullest. Each minute is a blessing from God. And never forget….the people who make a difference in our lives are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards.  They are the ones that care for us.

Live simply.. Love seriously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Leave the rest to God.

A small request
All you are asked to do is keep this circulating, even if it is only to one more person, in memory of anyone you know that has been struck down by cancer or is still fighting their battle.

You’re Invited!

To the Pinkalicious Luncheon at Youssef’s! Check out the details below….

In other news…

If you’re interested in FREE events, Katheryn will be leading an absolutely FREE yoga class at the museum this coming Wednesday the 22nd. Please join us for “Yoga at the Museum” at the Hickory Museum of Art from 6-7 PM. No yoga experience needed!

Gratitude!

Just finished a beautiful bicycle ride & realized it was 7 years ago this month that I completed my surgeries for breast cancer. There have been so many silver linings in this breast cancer cloud, a new bike, my non-profit, Through Healing Eyes(THE), New Beginnings Yoga, teacher certs,teaching 5 yoga classes/week, new friends. The list continues to grow & I am continually blessed.

THE web site is in the process of being updated so check soon for all of the events leading up to BREAST CANCER AWARENESS month~ October!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Labor Day!

Katheryn

T.H.E. Happenings

Hello friends! As Fall approaches, Through Healing Eyes is gearing up for our favorite month…OCTOBER (breast cancer awareness month ya’ll)! We have all sorts of surprises in store for our supporters and we can’t wait to share them with you. But, if you just can’t wait until October to come pay T.H.E. a visit…there’s a great opportunity coming up where you can support T.H.E., watch (and even participate in) some acro yoga, bid on a handsome handyman for charity, and SO MUCH MORE. We’ll have a booth at the Catawba Vally Women’s Show September 11 & 12, at the Hickory Metro Convention Center. Hours are Saturday 10am-6pm and Sunday 12pm-6pm. Hope to see you there!

Watch the adorable commercial for this years Women’s Show here.

In other September happenings…on Thursday, September 30th at 11:30am Youssef 242 is honoring T.H.E. by serving a “Pinkalicious Luncheon”! Tickets are $35.00 and a portion of the proceeds goes straight to Through Healing Eyes. If you’re interested in enjoying some fine dining guilt free (it’s all for charity right?!) grab a ticket and join the fun! Thanks Youssef!

That’s all for now! Stay tuned for more updates and lots of new info! We love to hear from you, so please leave a comment and let us know if there’s anything you would like us to write about. It’s Q&A time! 🙂 Namaste.

New Children’s Book Helps Kids Cope

Let My Colors Out, by Courtney Filigenzi, is an award-winning children’s book that is helping children whose parent or relative has been diagnosed with cancer. It chronicles the story of a young boy as his mother undergoes cancer treatment. The boy uses colors to express his emotions. Sometimes he is sad/blue, angry/red, scared/purple, jealous/green, or even in denial/orange. Throughout his journey, the boy begins to realize that its okay to have all these emotions and letting them out through coloring is healthy. Eventually, he is happy/yellow and learns to cope with his mother’s diagnosis by accepting his emotions as normal.

This book has been published through the American Cancer Society and is an excellent tool for kids who are dealing with a cancer diagnosis in the family. It teaches kids a way of coping while also reassuring them that they are not alone. Children who are dealing with cancer in the family need to be shown that their emotions are healthy and this book does just that.

Although women are more at risk for breast cancer after the age of 55, there are plenty of breast cancer survivors who were diagnosed at a younger age who have children. If you or someone you know has a child dealing with cancer in his/her family, take a moment to look at this book. It could help open up a dialogue between you and your child that could strengthen your relationship and your child’s emotional well-being. The book even has a pop-up at the end and you CAN’T go wrong with pop-ups right? Right!

Peace, happiness, and lots of coloring to you! May all your crayons be pink of course! xo

Remembering Allyn (Miss January)

Allyn, Miss January infected all that knew her with her smile, her laughter & her humor. As a survivor for close to 40 years, she always held the mantra that her job in life was to live and she did so to the fullest with tenacity and grace. Her words for our 2010 calendar were:

I don’t know why I have been chosen to walk down this path, but i know that I do not walk it alone. And when I cannot walk God carries me. The path has graced me with many fine examples of not just survivors but thrivers. Family and friends remind me that cancer is simply a slippery stone in the creek that I must cross to the road on the other side. I am blessed to walk down the path if only to meet you along the way.

We are so blessed to have met her on our path and then to know her along the way. She will be greatly missed but will live in our hearts forever!

Find information about the service here and send out condolences through the guestbook.

May you all be well. Namaste.