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The words every family dreads are the ones that inform you that one of your loved ones has been diagnosed with a serious illness. Everyone in the family’s world is changed. You feel so many things at one time – Fear, Love, Support, and Paralysis. Our family got that in March of 2005. Our younger brother, at age 54, was diagnosed with Chronic Lymphoma which then progressed to B-Cell Lymphoma in July, 2005. Our constant lament was “WHAT CAN WE DO?!” The answer came in the form of a piece of art created when we took the outline of all of our hands and formed them into a design which represented the Constructive Healing Cycle of Feng Shui.
While John was going through his treatments, he wrote the following: “Cancer challenges you every day. Its goal is not just to take your life but your quality of life. And it does it by waiting for you to lose your focus for a minute, to be passive, so it can take some ground. And it’s ground it doesn’t give back easily. That is why you have to stand toe-to-toe with cancer, fight it every step of the way, and hold onto or take back what is rightfully yours. It starts with the small things. Taking a walk when you’re not feeling well, even if it is just to the end of the street, because it tells your body you want to live. A long walk with the dog on the good days because it makes you feel better and she loves it. Breakfast at the Pancake House because it is what normal people do. Calling the office to catch up and give some advice because it gives you a rush. But it has to extend to the big things. Being your own advocate. Forcing the doctors to collaborate, giving you their best thinking. Spending real time writing a CarePage update because it helps you sort out your thoughts, understand what you are feeling, and keeps you sharp. And making sure you are taking in all the support that is flowing your way because this is what provides a lot of the motivation you need to keep going, to do whatever it takes in the short term to ensure you are not only not giving up any ground, but taking some back. This is what allows you to win.” The same could be said for every disease that requires this fight. What emerged was a wonderful piece of art for John to have in his hospital room to remind him we were with him. The connection that was made with John was through this piece of art. As we gathered at his transition what he gave us, however, was the connection of strength and love that a family so desires when they need to say goodbye. John’s reaction of - “I felt so loved! I knew you were all thinking of me and praying for me, but now I can truly FEEL that support!” - was his encouragement to launch
“THE HANDS KIT – Connected by Love”.
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