Where's the JOY in cancer?

Five years ago, the day before my 33rd birthday, I received the diagnosis of stage 3, infiltrating ductile carcinoma.....a long, fancy, scientific description for "cancer". How could I have breast cancer? I was sure it must be some mistake.........I was healthy! I exercised every day! I ate the right foods! I nursed my children! I did monthly breast exams! How could this be?

It was true however and the journey of cancer began.....

Through a year of surgeries, chemotherapy, losing my hair, genetic testing, reconstructive surgery, and uncountable visits back and forth from hospitals and doctors' offices, many around me focused on the "tragedy" of cancer. I found quickly that looking at what was happening to my body was counter productive to my recovery. All around me, every day, were moments of joy. Friends, family, co-workers, neighbors and even complete strangers helped in so many ways to help our family work through the year. These are the things I chose to focus on.

Cancer opened my eyes to the things in life that truly matter. Cancer caused me to slow down and spend those special moments with my children. Cancer has given me permission to walk past the sink of dirty dishes to sit and read a book with my child.....the dishes would wait. Cancer encouraged me to spend more time in my garden and less time worrying about the house being cleaned to perfection........the dust would still be there to be cleaned whether or not I rushed in from my gardening or if I spent an extra moment enjoying the beauty of the flowers around me. Cancer pushed me to recognize the joy in my life that surrounds me every day.

Our efforts to help fight cancer through various fundraising efforts reinforced the joy of life. Countless individuals joining together to raise awareness and money to find a cure. What could be more positive and joyful than that? We have been overwhelmed by generosity of time, money and spirit. This is what is important in life.....people working with people.....for people......together.

So many people spend their lives searching for their personal joy........don't wait for a daunting diagnosis to force you to recognize what is right in front of you now! It's not about obtaining the dream-house, the car you want, the perfect job......it's about life, living, breathing.......simply being alive to enjoy the beauty of the world around us!

While we may not have a choice as to the diagnosis of cancer and what it does to our bodies, we do have a choice on how to deal with it.......choose to find the good, choose to focus on the positive, choose to continue to recognize the wonders of our world, choose to enjoy the small significant moments, choose.......choose joy.

Glenna Sanford
Speaker / Author / Life Power Coach
glenna@glennasanford.com

Where Do You Find Joy in Your Life?

Where is your joy? What do you find joyful? Is your life filled with joy?

These are not trick questions. These are questions we all should be able to answer quickly and with confidence!! We all become so busy and frenetic in our lives that often we forget to recognize what makes us smile, what makes our hearts full, what makes us truly joyful!

When is the last time you noticed the sun shining through the clouds? When is the last time you stopped and picked a dandelion? When is the last time you rode in your car with the windows down and the wind blowing through the open windows and tossing your hair wildly around your face? When is the last time you hugged a child, held the hand of an elderly person, tried to catch a bubble floating through the air from a bubble wand being waved through the air? Little things.....little moments.....big results....big "joy".

Recently I had one of those days where it was difficult to find the "joy" in things happening around me. A friend was in the hospital, I had learned of another whose mother had just been diagnosed with cancer, a work project had gone awry, an unexpected bill (a very large one) appeared in my mailbox, anticipated travel plans needed to be canceled......every have one of those days?

In the midst of the chaos of the day I stopped to pick up my youngest child.....of course I was late....... she climbed into the car and I (with forced cheer in my voice) asked her "How was your day?" With a click of her seat belt buckle she sighed and said, "Mom, my day was great! I got picked to read in science class, the teacher asked me to help with a special project, I played tag on the playground with three of my best friends, the hot lunch today was yummy, AND I got all of my spelling words right!"

Wow! Her statement went through me like a lightening bolt.....of course!! All of these little things in my daughter's day are what made her feel like the day was great! The simple things throughout her day put a smile on her face and made the day "great"! Where were my "great" things of the day? Had I even considered them? Had I even considered the numerous things that made my day beautiful and fulfilled? The co-worker who held the door for me as I walked into the building, the hand-written thank-you note received from a friend, the fresh hot coffee in the breakroom, the soft rain falling on the new flowers outside the window, the anticipation of a long walk with the family dog when I got home, reading a book with my children before bedtime, feeling their warm hugs as they were tucked into their beds.......these are truly the things that were making my day "great" and I had let them go by unnoticed, unappreciated, unrecognized.

The everyday small things in life are truly our "joys". If we spend all of our time searching for the big joys we miss the ones that really add up. Where do you find joy in your life? Do you see it every day? Remember the little things.....remember the little things that truly matter....and you will have a joyful life!


Glenna Sanford
Speaker/Author/Life Power Coach
glenna@glennasanford.com

Joy is One Choice Away

Why is it that we prolong our true enjoyment of life until we "get the house, job, car, lifestyle" we think we want and deserve? Why is it we do not enjoy right here and now.....our every day lives....regardless of what we have or don't have around us?

I have friends who are so sad with the state of their lives....they think they have either done the wrong things, are in the wrong jobs, live in the wrong state, don't have the things in their lives that they think will make them happy......they are so close to true joy and they don't even realize it.

JOY is but one choice away. We must CHOOSE to find joy in our lives. JOY may be a very hard choice, but it is still one choice away. We CHOOSE to live a certain way. We CHOOSE to associate with certain people. We CHOOSE to perpetuate certain habits. We can also CHOOSE to find JOY in our lives and enjoy the very essence of being alive.

When I was diagnosed with breast cancer 5 years ago I had a choice. I could choose to think my life was over or I could choose to believe the rest of my life was just beginning. I could choose to overlook the pleasure of my 2 and 6 year olds because of the disease, or I could choose to cherish every moment with them and plan for their futures. I could choose to curl up in my bedrooom and ignore the world, or I could choose to embrace the very essence of being alive. My choice was to LIVE. My choice was to find JOY in my surroundings. My choice was to stive for a future.

No, chemotherapy is not fun. No, multiple surgeries is not fun. No, losing your hair is not fun. No, thinking that cancer could return at any moment is not fun. All of those things however are moments in time.....they do not define who we are and what we will become. I am not a cancer patient first....I am an individual first ..... just one who happened to have cancer. We cannot live our lives sucumbing to our fears......we must live our lives focused on keeping JOY front and center.

Where do you find your everyday JOY in your life? Have you made choices in your life to make JOY your focus? What does JOY mean to you?

Here is a challenge for you......the next time you are faced with an obstacle that makes you sad, mad, upset, remorseful, fearful......stop and ask yourself...."What is the one choice I could make in this situation that would turn it to a situation of joy?" It's not an impossible question. It's a question that can turn your life around.


Glenna Sanford
Speaker/Author/Life Power Coach
glenna@glennasanford.com