Catching Up....

Right after I posted my last blog about my life in Moses Lake, a couple of special friends died suddenly, within two weeks of each other.

The first one was my former boss at the Peninsula Daily News. Rex Wilson moved to Mexico to join his wife, Olga, in their family business and was suddenly diagnosed with lung cancer and just as suddenly left us all behind three months before his birthday.

The second was a fellow I met while traveling about eight years ago, William Good from Florida, and who became, along with his wife Sandi, delightful additions to my life online as well as when they came to Washington State to visit family. Bill was traveling in Spain with Sandi when he had a heart attack in mid-February, less than two weeks after my boss.

I tried to talk to my husband about the grief I was feeling, but he did not really understand the joy that having any exchange with these fellows gave me - their laughter, their quick wit, their expansive natures causing the lights in my world to shine a little brighter. In some ways it felt like my Dad had died again because there were aspects of each of these fellows that must have reminded me of him.

Then, getting over those sad days, my son-in-law announced his Multiple Myeloma was causing numbers to rise and he was going to have treatments again. So I retreated once more and found myself self-diagnosing anxiety and took on the objective of becoming a healer with art therapy.

"Celtic Knot Flower" is a design from another CZT that
I incorporated into a 12 -inch by 12-inch acrylic work.

This art therapy is called Zentangle™and though it is not advertised as a therapy per se, it is well understood that meditation is helpful and this process of drawing certain patterns was clearly helping me.

Something from my journal that has color and light in it.

I signed up for and was accepted to the 33rd session of training for Certified Zentangle Teachers (CZT) in Providence, Rhode Island for the end of March and beginning of April, 2019. For four blissful days I did nothing but eat, drink and draw with lots of laughter and fun. I concluded my trip with a fresh lobster dinner to celebrate achieving this certification, feeling pretty sure it might be awhile before the next trip and lobster!

Me with my seminar roommate, Norma G.
from Brazil. We had a good connection
and helped each other along.

Home again, I find I am not quite ready to begin teaching The Zentangle Method because I feel I still have so much to learn myself. But I have incorporated it into my existing art activity and have some fun plans for doing more in the future.

This is a small frame purchased at a yard
sale; making the Zentangle appear to be
more worthy... 

This is a Zendala, using tangles from Zentangle, Inc.

The other shoe dropped when we heard that a relative was
diagnosed with cancer, so I made her a blanket with pink
symbols for healing but it had special meaning for me as
it had patterns I have used in tangling.

Feels like an Agatha Christie mystery...

Not exactly the "statues" I had in mind, but in a way
they stand in for that element.

If you ever read "Ten Little Indians" or seen the Agatha Christie Mystery "And Then There Were None..." you may have some idea of how I am feeling today hearing that yet another long-term Multiple Myeloma (MM) has announced his acceptance that no more treatments will be done.

Since I started this blog in 2009 to rant, rave and rail against a disease I knew nothing about at that time, I have watched all those wonderful folks fall like the statues in the mystery. Fortunately the person who inspired my blog writing is still with us and he is managing the consequences of the disease pretty well as we mark the tenth year since his diagnosis.

But Mike Gormley and his wife, Lorna, are the latest victims of MM, a far more murderous element than anything Christie could create. Reading that news late last night, I guess I should not have been surprised to have had dreams about most of the others who have already departed. It was a strange party to attend, not unlike the one on Shelter Island where everyone (unknowingly) has a death sentence awaiting them. We gathered around the table and I had a chance to speak to each one, asking how they were doing, commenting on how long the silence has been, etc.

My favorite was Lonnie Nesseler, a motorcycle rider, pianist, scientist and creative personality, who stepped up and said, "It's a new adventure. You can't really describe it to those who haven't arrived yet." Lonnie had been adventuresome in his treatments, and willing to educate readers as well as his medical team along the journey. But I had a toast with Bob Kirkpatrick, who pointed out that I was now a lot closer to where he used to live, which would suggest that we are not really so distant from the Other Side as we tend to believe.

So let us raise our glasses to them all, let them hear their names called out once more in appreciation for what and who they were to each of us, gone but not forgotten.

Peter Boyle (actor), Sam Walton (WalMart founder), John Ricco (author), Andre (photographer) 2009, Hamada (statesman) 2010, Paula (Multiple Myloma Buddy maker) and Sean Tiernan (photographer) 2012, Lonnie Nesseler (educator) 2010, Robert "Bob" Kirkpatrick (inventor) 2015, and others known to me but not listed here for privacy reasons.

Each one was special to someone, each one served a purpose. I guess the reason for posting this is to honor Mike as he prepares to conclude his business here and to support Lorna as she has little choice as a primary caregiver to go along for the ride.

My dearest wish is that we are able to solve this mystery of MM; to find out what causes the bone marrow cells to start running haywire, to be able to give those with this diagnosis something to hope for, if not a cure at least some way to live with it after treatment.

The setting sun shadows Mt. Rainier in Washington State.

And I end by quoting Ken Kesey, "Loved. You can't use it in the past tense. Death does not stop that love at all."

Grateful for the gift

This flower was chosen for it's color;
the deep maroon is the color that MM
supporters use for fund-raising.

When Multiple Myeloma appeared on the horizon of my life with a relative's announcement about this time in 2009, I could not see farther down the road than the next treatment and certainly with all the news about the current situation at that time it did not seem hopeful.

Now, seven years later, the relative is off all medications and is moving, literally, into a new life.

For the individual, it was the autologous stem cell transplant from a close relation that turned things around. But it was at least two years after the transplant before we were seeing green lights.

All of this is still important because a friend has discovered some seriously flawed information that is making its way into the MM threads.

Please read her post at: http://www.loripuente.com/icer-epic-fail/ and draw your own conclusions.

What is really important is that false information is not allowed to proliferate in a field where hope is so fragile and where successes hold so much promise. Let's make sure this does not become cemented anywhere and used for future data or research.

And meanwhile, I am grateful for the gift of life for my relative, appreciative of the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance and Fred Hutch and UW for all they did and are doing to solve the mystery of MM.

Relay for Life and others...

In the midst of preparing for a kind of relay race back to Colombia to close up and out my life down there, I walked the Relay for Life locally to honor my many MM friends and others who are holding on through adversity with cancer. In particular I want to recognize a 'blog-pal' called Karen who has been a reader and supporter here as well as on other blogs. (NOTE: Swim Across America in Seattle will be happening next month - September 7. I have heard rumors that a new and younger member of the family might be competing so I will be donating and will be there!)

Karen and I have never met, never even spoken on the phone, and yet I feel as if I know her from her postings. A compassionate, upbeat and direct-speaking individual, Karen has been through the wringer with the death of her beloved Hugh from MM and her own health challenges. As I walked around the track, ticking off the laps, I sent healing energy to Karen as I know she was having surgery yesterday.

If you are a walker or a runner, perhaps you will join me in simply sending healing thoughts to Karen - or anyone else facing health issues - as you walk or run. Thoughts are things, I am finding, and while the action of walking or running is somewhat of a meditation, it is also a time when we who are lucky enough to be doing it can send some of that vibrant energy onward.

My trip to Colombia will be short and very busy, so I may not post here until I return. I leave you with some pictures from the past couple of weeks and this thought... I have eliminated ALL SUGAR, even in its hidden forms (malodextrin, dextrose, sucrose, corn sugar, etc.) from my diet and body for the past 50 days along with white things like potatoes, rice, (even brown rice) pastas, breads, etc. sticking to fresh vegetables (organic when I can get it) and various proteins. With mild exercise, I have gotten rid of almost 30 pounds of excess baggage (glad they didn't weigh ME at the ticket counter before!) and corrected some health issues of my own.

The Olympics with beach grass in the foreground, WA

The beach grass in close-up at Port Williams, WA

Protection Island, in Puget Sound, Washington

I'm not quite a shadow of my former self, but I'm working
on it. Photo of me with my beach-walking buddy.

Error in Posting

Anyone who read the posting for today relating to someone with MM, that was posted in error. It was written two years ago and  inadvertently scheduled.  Please forgive me for any distress I may have caused.

Emma Enduring

As the Christmas season really starts to get underway,  there are lots of causes that are seeking funding and pulling at our heartstrings. But there is one cause I wish I could put an end to and that's Multiple Myeloma. Not just for my personal connection to it, but because as time as gone by I've grown to know quite a few people who have become more than just a name.

Be careful walking in the woods these days... I was caught by surprise
when this giant snowman appeared, just about the time the snow did.

It was because of Lorna's blog that I was led to Emma, a lively and young woman in the U.K. who is enduring cycles of treatments because she wants nothing more than to be normal again. I don't have much in the way of resources to make a difference except I'd like to ask that if you feel so inclined, stop by and offer up some encouragement to this spunky gal.

And to remind my readers that even on your roughest days, if you don't have MM, please STOP complaining that you may have to wait in a line, or get stuck in traffic, or have weather interfere with your plans, because all of that is better than spending a full day with nurses bollocking up IV lines, or having someone grind out bone marrow from your hip with something that looks like a drill bit for oil researchers, or living with the anxiety that the next well-meaning person who sneezes in your direction could be putting your life at risk, for which a breezy "Sorry..." apology is hardly sufficient.

So this is also a reminder to everyone about the season for 'bugs,' that hand-washing is really important, staying home if you think you are coming down with something, sneeze into your elbow and not your hands, and for heaven's sake (because we are nearly full right now) if you know someone with a compromised immune system, don't go and visit them - call or send food instead.

The Question is - are you eating well?

I am not a doctor and not a researcher, but I have been following the progress of a few Multiple Myeloma patients who have opted for Stem Cell Transplants (STC). Some have had success with an auto SCT (using their own cells) and some have had success with an allogenic (using cells from a close match) transplant.

Some months ago I was the cheer-up-leader for a photographer in the UK, Sean Tiernan, who was recovering from his allo STC - using his brother's cells - but he succumbed to pneumonia, something that is a horrible risk for those people with brand-new immune systems. (If you click the link you can read his blog.) This does not mean that I am a supporter one way or the other for STCs, only that going through that process is often a lonely one and I try to offer hope and encouragement in my postings.

Corn tortilla and sausage for the first course, with scrambled eggs and
perhaps hugo (juice) mora (blackberry) or naranja (orange) to follow.

One of my MM pals is a non-secretor, so he is not eligible for an STC and instead has been managing with a chemical combo that he acknowledges has sustained him beyond his 'shelf life' but has not really stopped the progression of the disease. He is also a writer who doesn't delude himself about the outcome, or about how the doctors sometimes make decisions for one patient based on the data for the disease either disregarding individual conditions or overlooking it to get to a quick result. For him, and you can read about it on Deludia, it was nearly an early end.

David Emerson had chemo and the STC and has undergone other therapies. (Click on the page called GALEN and read his history and the choices he made.) A recent article about alternative therapies said that conventional medicine gets recognition for cancer cures and the alternative field gets labeled as criminals when their patient(s) die and we never hear about those who are living many years after a cancer diagnosis. One blog I am following is written by a woman who is following the Gonzalez protocol based on nutrition and pancreatic enzymes. Here is her story.

Dr. James Berenson, a nationally recognized researcher of MM, has stated he does not encourage his patients to go the STC route. But the medical team led by Dr. BB at the University of Alabama takes the position that being aggressive with tandem STCs gives the greatest chance for a complete remission (CR) and there are more than a few MMer's who are in CR now from Dr. BB's regimen. You can read Nick Van Dyke's blog here.

It is too bad there is no comprehensive data on MM routes toward the cure... like there is for say, buying a car. You can find out which cars have a history of problems, which cars can go over 200,000 miles and not break the bank, and you can evaluate one car against another (or several others) to make your choice. I'd like to see something like this for the STC route, so patients have more information when making that choice. But for now, there is some collaboration going on in Boston, MA with Dana Farber Cancer Institute to develop a more personalized treatment plan - very interesting report here.

Chicken salad with celery bits and mayonnnaise on a bed of lettuce,
with toasted almonds and half a sliced apple covers all the bases.
Making homemade mayonnaise is really easy, by the way.

Another of the MM blogs I follow is that of 'Minnesota Don' who has incorporated nutrition changes into his lifestyle and who demonstrates with his national running campaign (Don is only a few states shy of having run a marathon in all 50!) how his food works for him.

Sadly, another well-informed MM blogger, Lonnie Nesseler,  http://nesseler-medical.blogspot.com/, recently died after 14 years with the disease, probably from the damages caused by his treatments. Lonnie posted in December of 2011 that after a second 'fill-up' of donor cells and going through another hellish hospital experience, he was in Complete Remission at long last. Awhile after that he posted on the MM FaceBook group a link to this report on the abuse of vitamin supplements.

Unlike other blood cancers that are more responsive to a 'standard of care' regimen, it seems to me, as a person/caregiver standing on the sidelines, that MM is more like an individualized disease and thus is harder to treat with the menu options of STCs, chemotherapy and other drugs. It's like going to a restaurant and asking the chef to please feed you, but in order for you to survive, he will have to make an educated guess as to what food combinations are best for you.

In that line of thinking, I have been listening to a book called "Healthy Eating, Healthy World," by J. Morris Hicks and J. Stanfield Hicks which discusses the interconnectivity of nature and mankind and how we are failing our own potential by how we eat. We are eating out of our natural range, causing serious health issues for the human population and damaging our environment because of the demand to provide more beef and dairy cows, chickens and the huge chemically-covered corn and wheat fields. Not to mention that the structure of wheat has changed over the past half century, so we aren't getting the nutrition from that grain that we used to. Read this about wheat and Dr. William Davis' book on it.

Bananas are still one of nature's most amazing fruits.
Sadly the chemicals used to preserve them for market
are affecting the workers who harvest them.

The Hicks' theory is the threat of becoming a 'vegetable' through a stroke is best overcome by eating raw vegetables. I am not sure I totally agree with that premise, but eating more healthy vegetables - and not those from GMO! -  certainly brings benefits.

Currently the bloggers Dom and Nan are doing quite a bit of research and reporting on the GMO issue and stem cell findings (especially as it relates to MM) and you can follow them here.

The peasants in South America (where I live for part of the year) can best afford the local fresh fruits and vegetables with a little chicken, goat and beef once in awhile. They walk a lot, work hard and live by the sun, starting their work when it comes up at 6 and stopping before it goes down at 6. Obesity never used to be a problem here, but as the camposinos strive to be 'richer,' they eat more sugar, consume more empty calorie foods with the result that both diabetes and heart disease are on the rise and if they acquire a motorcycle, they seldom walk when they can ride.

Getting exercise daily is also part of keeping the system operational. Even taking a short walk, if that's all you have energy for right now, is healthful.

The toxins in our systems caused by chemicals used in materials to build our cars, decorate our homes, provide aid when we hurt, and so on, are helping to make it possible for previously limited cancers to invade bodies of all ages. So I feel strongly there is some logic (and benefit) to having a hair sample test done to determine the status of the body along with the other testing that is done to determine the level of MM at diagnosis.

I am not blaming anyone for their diseases, but encouraging all those who are wanting better health to start looking at what you are eating. (You might find my postings about flouride and aspartame interesting.) Particularly look at how many hidden sugars are in the things you buy to prepare quickly. The best thing I have done for my own health has been to live in a third-world country where I am almost 'forced' to eat fresher everything. And so far, South America has one of the the lowest incidence of MM, but as South Americans start eating like North Americans, this may change. Now that I'm living in the NW, I am focusing on eating foods as fresh and healthy as I can find them. TIP: When in the bigger supermarkets, shop the outside lanes and avoid the middle ones where all the preserved foods are.

How can I have good strong cells if I don't give them the nutrition they need? Most of the time when I return to the U.S. I have gained weight and I know it's because I have access to the very tasty, not-necessarily-good-for-me, treats that are so readily available there. I offer up these links to help you make better choices for better health and hope they are helpful.

Hippocrates knew that food was the key: "Your food will be your medicine and your medicine will be your food."

The first of October? Already?

This entry in last year's parade was a huge hit with the kids!

It will time for the festival and ferias (fair) in just two weeks... and I am moving out of my little casita in mid-November, partly because the owner wants it back and partly because I am heading back to the U.S. to the twins in Seattle.

Yesterday my friend Isabel was working with some local folks to raise money for the Casa de Cultura's float for the festival parade. I have been invited to help the team paint it and assemble the floral parts (done in papier mache) so I will keep you updated on that particular adventure.

One of the views over the garden looking eastward; I'll have morning sun.

I have found a much smaller place to store the stuff I am not selling or shipping back to the U.S. It is unclear how much time I will be spending here for the foreseeable future, but I am not quite ready to close the door entirely on either Barichara or exploring more of Colombia as time allows. This new place is just three rooms and a kitchenette, but it is on property owned by a historian, and he has been gracious enough to tell me I don't have to worry about moving anything again as long as he is living. Leaving it there costs about the same as a storage unit, but it has a lovely view in three directions and will be a quiet retreat when I am back here. (The pipes in the picture are for the owner's new house up in the hills with an even more majestic view, he said. They are in the early stages of construction.)

Sombrita isn't crazy about moving either... but

During the past two years I have lived in three different places, four if you count this next (final?) move. As I dislike intensely moving, I am truly both frustrated and unsettled with the living arrangements here and cannot afford to buy land or even a mud shack to solve that, so I am incredibly grateful to my friends for their help. I will miss the little casita, but frankly coming back this time and knowing I have to move again, it hasn't been all that relaxing.

Although the cats will have to adjust, it won't be  too hard since it is only over one block from where we are right now. And Ultimo was found on the day of the visit to confirm the location and price to be hanging out there anyhow... must be a sign! I will be assured of their contentment knowing that along with a huge garden to explore, there are several bright parakeets in an outdoor cage for their entertainment...

Ultimo already hangs out at the owner's house!

The news about having to leave the house came while I was in the U.S. and I received it with mixed feelings. So I was really ready to just sell everything and consider my adventures over in Colombia, except that my friends urged me not to do that and helped me to find this solution. Thus I'm downsizing and preparing for both the move and to travel again... the photos and news I get about the twins is enticing, but other information is worrisome... hopefully resolving itself before I arrive.

Myeloma Buddy Maker Goes on Final Holiday

Myeloma Buddy dolls were sold from Paula's Etsy shop
and all profits went to Myeloma UK or IMF
(International Myeloma Foundation).
(Photo taken by Paula from her blog.)

There are many of us who have the "Myeloma Buddy," created by Paula Kilgallon of Rainsford, UK, in her efforts to raise funds for, and awareness of, the disease that she tried to manage for a little more than three years. It was never a 'fight' for her, but a constant opportunity to bring a different perspective to the various experiences she faced with an unswerving positive attitude. She deserved to overcome MM if having a remarkable sense of humor was the way to do it, because Paula had that in abundance.

Her blog "Feresaknit" is a chronicle of her sewing, knitting and crocheting her way through tests, procedures, hospital stays that she referred to as 'holidays,' and the untrammeled, ram-rod test of character that she passed with flying colors when her support system of medical transport failed to show up or kept her waiting for hours when she was clearly ill, or her mother-in-law called to insist that she needed to have Paula come over to take care of some niggling task(s), or her Professor wanted to 'discuss something with her,' and she refused to delay hearing the very bad news. Only she gave it to all of us with her usual aplomb, trying to prepare us for today. She never gave up; she was released.

The circumstances that connected me to Paula back at the end of December of 2009 gave us both a chance to share some laughs, some insights as well as photographs as we became pals on a journey none of us expected to take. Please take the time to read her second posting here of her search for the testing bureau for her license to drive. Paula should have been writing scripts for Comedy Central.

We followers were enthralled by the entrance in January 2010 of the Jack Russell/Staffordshire Bull pup "Tommy" in her life who immediately ate one of her crafting needles requiring a hefty vet bill for the stitches required to sew him up after retrieving the needle from his stomach. Tommy was paving the way for her very own Buddy in September - who would end up sleeping on her bed, in the fresh laundry basket, really anywhere it was convenient for him and Paula indulged him, adored him, and shared him with us, too.

Paula's husband, referred to as "B," has a mother who would have tried the patience of Job, but Paula was stronger - for awhile. Some of her postings about the M-I-L were riotous about repeated phone calls and misunderstandings that were reminiscent of the once popular British weekly comedy series, "Are You Being Served?" (A dear friend of Paula's posted this about her.)

Along with the Buddy antics, we worried about Paula driving "B's" car, losing her keys and being afraid to tell her husband, discovering Buddy had chewed through the seatbelt in the back seat of B's car, and a myriad lot of other aspects of the life she was living and letting us in to be like Nosy Neighbors, peering over the blog fence at everything, listening at the keyhole of her existence. When she completed her stem cell transplant and the numbers, at first, seemed to be heading in the right direction, we were her cheering section.

Paula shared many of the various treatments she endured which left little, if anything, to the imagination. But her ability to see the humor in some of the grimmest situations pulled us all through with her. And who among us forever after will refer to PJ's or pajamas as "jim jams?"

Paula received a well-earned reward of the Inspirational Cancer Blog badge and Top Health Blogger for her blog. Her blog readers were seldom disappointed as she wrote about her life - the good, the bad, the frustrating, the bizarre, showing photos of many of her projects and the precious 'postings' of her own Buddy - with us often. We were privileged confidants about her enduring marriage to "B" whom she clearly loved with the same vibrancy she lived. Her creative artistic energies won her first place in local contests and her many gifts, both of actual creations or her thoughtful comments, won her first place in our hearts.

When you look up at the stars shining brightly from the heavens, perhaps you will join me in imagining one of them might be Paula who certainly was a star while she was with us. I will miss you, dear friend.

A Healing How To.. from The Intenders

The Mot-Mot eats bugs; lots of them!

Many of you have experienced a message from me, some even in person, which goes something like this: "I (or we) are intending _(fill in the the blank with a positive present voice statement)_ for the Highest and Best Good of All Concerned, so be it and SO IT IS!" And I usually add a "Whoooooooooo!" or an "Amen!" at the end in order to make sure the Universe knows I want to be heard.

This was partially learned from a group called The Intenders of the Highest Good, and some of it came from other sources, including my grandmother, Elsa, who believed strongly in the power of the mind. Long ago I used to annoy my children when I would wave my arms in a circle and call out "White Lights!" as they were leaving the house or the car or getting on an airplane. It was my early effort at communicating a blessing, a thought of protection for them, seeing them in their Highest Light of Protection and Good.

Orange blossoms have the most wonderful scent!

When I started this blog, one of my personal objectives was to be a cheerleader for those with MM and to use intentions in that sideline position. It has been gratifying to hear back from some people that they have appreciated my expression of commitment to their well-being. But I am the one who has realized great benefits from my almost daily 'meditations' of healing messages.

I joined an Intenders group in St. Augustine, FL, almost a decade ago, after being trained as a Reiki Master, and have learned a lot during that time about the effects of energy and especially as it relates to healing. And I am still a student. I am learning how water and food can affect that energy, but the mind is a powerful tool as well.

This is not to say that just because you are 'thinking positive thoughts' that you will overcome a health issue, nor is one to blame for an illness or condition because of not having uplifting thoughts. But I do personally believe that focus of thought is part of the equation of healing. So to help explain what I mean, I want to offer a message recently delivered from Tony Burroughs, a co-founder of The Intenders, which says it so much better than I can.

This is a Utah sunset shot I captured last year.

The following doc comes from a recent Intenders Newsletter. It says a great deal about what we stand for and where we’re see ourselves headed in the way we act toward each other.  We've received so many favorable comments on it that we thought we would share it with those of you in The Intenders Facebook Founders Circle.  It’s called Healing: A How To . . .

"Teach no one that he is what you would not want to be." This line comes from A Course in Miracles and it is worth rereading a time or two until you understand it because it says so much to those who are intending to make a happier, healthier life for themselves. Indeed, these few words hold a key to discerning and dispelling all that we have been taught about sicknesses, defense, money and almost everything we believe in.

For when we look closely we realize that we have been taught how to get sick, how to defend ourselves against enemies unseen, how to manifest lack and limitation, how to act in conformance with all that our society deems proper and just. Fortunately, people are waking up now and we're beginning to ask ourselves: "Are these things we have been taught continuing to serve us? Would the people who taught us (and continue to teach us) to believe in disease, defense, and destitution want to be experiencing these things for themselves?" It's very doubtful.

At this point we can stop and play the Blame Game (as so many of us have done in the past), or we can take a new tack. We can begin to reexamine all the old beliefs we were taught, discard those that are making us sick or unhappy, and we can make use of another line from The Course which says, "When a brother behaves insanely, you can heal him only by perceiving the sanity in him."

We in the Intenders would say that we see him in his Highest Light. We see his Perfection, his Divine Essence, his Spirit Self - and in doing so something quite magical - a transformation - begins to happen. He picks up on what we're doing and he contemplates a change in his behavior. No longer will he teach that which he would not want for himself. Now he's taken the first step in healing wounds he's carried with him from way back.

This is what is happening all around us these days. In the midst of seemingly relentless chaos, more and more people are holding the template of the Highest Light. We're seeing everyone and everything in its Highest, Sanest, Most Joyful State of Being, and, as a result, we're having a profound effect on the world we live in. We're healing it. We're healing it all - and here's the best part: That's exactly what we need to be doing in order to heal our own wounds from way back.

Tony Burroughs

10/1/11

Bougainvilla grows everywhere here.

Early on in my Reiki training, we learned that when we are healing others, we are healing ourselves as well. That isn't why I started doing Reiki, but it has been a wonderful adjunct to my practice. Reading "A Course in Miracles" daily for one year was another way to come to a greater understanding of how my early 'training' has affected all my life. 

Clearly I am no saint, nor am I about to claim to be The Healer. I am merely the conduit, the plastic pipe through which the energy and the message flows. I wanted to share this message so that others might join in this flow, this wonderful possible effect of healing it all... and for all of us to be in our Highest Light for the highest and best good of all concerned.... so be it and so it is.... whooooooooooo!

Ten Years Ago

The Saguaro cactus doesn't get it's first arm
until it is at least 50 years old!

Ten years ago I was living in Phoenix, Arizona and I was working for a start-up company providing on-line educational programs to troubled youths. I was up early listening to NPR as I was getting ready to head off to work. Arizona doesn't shift time for the Daylight Savings program, so we were only two hours ahead of the East coast. But it was light enough to see the Saguaro cactus and other desert flora and fauna from my condominium windows.

The night before I had just had my weekly phone conversation with my mother and, as usual, we had been talking about the weather and how lovely New England can be in early September. So when I heard that a plane had crashed into the twin towers in New York City, I said to myself, "How can that be? The weather is supposed to be clear today." I went in and turned on the TV, just in time to see the second passenger plane hit the skyscraper.

Everyone who was alert that day probably remembers where they were when they heard the news about what happened on September 11, 2001. I listened to the radio as I drove into work, astounded and disbelieving what I was hearing. Since our company used televisions to prepare the student programs, it was not surprising to arrive and find all the TVs tuned in to various channels for news updates. But what was a surprise is that our vice president was in NYC and had planned to make a pitch to an investment group at the World Trade Center. As there was no cell phone contact by the time we heard about it, we had no idea if he had been in either of the towers at the time of the disasters.

No work got done that day as we all watched events unfolding, and worrying about our VP. Just as the collapse began, our phone rang and it was the VP's wife calling us to let us know that he was fine. He had not gone to the WTC as planned because the fellow he was supposed to meet had called in sick that day with a bad cold and they had rescheduled for the next day. Of course, there never was a "next day," and eventually our VP was able to get back to Arizona, but it took him three weeks and several bus and train connections to do it.

I did not know that I would end up in Colombia almost a decade later, nor did I know that another issue of undocumented aliens would result in over 27 Colombians being added to the list of those who were killed that day because they were working in the restaurants in the towers. Affecting people who were of different nationalities, cultures, religions and persuasions, this horrible event should become a way to remember that we all bleed the color red, and to become a united world in remembering this day.

I have just reading "City of Dust: Illness, Arrogance and 9/11" by Anthony DePalma, a former NY Times reporter, who has done extensive research on the consequential health issues post-9/11. Apparently huge numbers of people who were working in rescue and recovery for weeks after the destruction were not wearing any kind of protective masks to prevent breathing in all the toxic dust. Some of that was due to not having the equipment, some of it was because of the heat and difficulty in communicating with a mask on, and some people were those who were caught unprepared in the first dust storm of pulverized materials with no way to protect their airways. What is clear from this book is that there were people who died on September 11, 2001, murdered in those terrorist events. But there are also people who have died, and those who are still dying, because of failures of the governmental agencies - local and national - to either properly assess or report on dangers of the environment, failures of employers to protect their workers from toxic exposures, failures of the medical community to properly identify symptoms and certainly failures of various investigative committees to pursue logical routes because of political agendas in place.

My purpose in posting about this book is two-fold: even a decade after the horrors of that day, there are emerging health issues related to the event which people should be aware of and not discount, and secondly, one of the emerging health issues is Multiple Myeloma. This from the book: "Mount Sinai reported in 2009 that it had found a higher than expected number of cases of multiple myeloma in responders who were younger than 45."

DePalma, Anthony (2010-07-21). City of Dust: Illness, Arrogance, and 9/11 (FT Press Science) (p. 223). FT Press. Kindle Edition.

Collaborative effort by two Colombian artists to create
their version of a remembrance of 9/11.

My hope, perhaps wrongly placed, is that it will not take another ten years before those people who have been 'in charge' are willing to look at their culpability, deliberate or accidental, so that the many victims of 9/11 at least are given the medical and financial support they need for whatever time they have left. And finally, that should anyone ever again be caught up in any kind of disaster where the clean air is compromised, they remember to do all they can to protect their lungs on their own because the government will not be your mother and will not take care of you.

Remembering this day ten years ago, my condolences go out to all who have lost someone they cared about as a consequence of 9/11 and I send blessings around the planet to heal what can be healed.

Fighting Dis-Ease by What We Eat and What We Don't

June's full moon is in Sagittarius and tonight, the 15th,
there will be a total eclipse lasting about 100 minutes.

A couple of the blogs I read about Multiple Myeloma offer some insight to this disease, and ways to live with it or fight it. In particular, Pat Killingsworth and his wife, Pat, offer several blogs on the subject of cancer, unfortunately due to personal experience. If you have stumbled onto mine for this reason, I hope you will click again to find the Multiple Myloma Blog and read Pat's entries. He is an endless researcher, one of several erudite MM bloggers, and easy to read.

My objective in taking on this subject today is that I do believe in the benefits of eating good, natural foods and I am (because of a certain cancer risk in my family) a proponent of curcumin and take it daily. I want to remain healthy and so I do also take supplements along with a daily fresh fruit, vegetable and some protein.

I have commented before that certain elements in our lives seem to be making a lot more people vulnerable to various varieties of this disease of cancer - key word "dis-ease." Stress is listed as a major contributor to heart disease. It is really disturbing that so many more people under the age of 50 are being diagnosed with MM, but I don't think stress of any kind is sufficiently toxic to cause dis-ease.

And it is not my intent to lay blame at the foot of the sufferer - already in anguish at feeling ill and perhaps powerless, this would be cruel. But I will ask these questions: Can we be certain that the water we drink is really safe? Do we really know what happens to the food we eat, before we eat it? What can we do to maximize healthy living before we face any kind of illness?

With all the threats of "Swine Flu," "Bird Flu" and just plain, but potentially deadly "Flu," we have to avoid the sugars (hidden as well as variations), sugar substitutes like aspertame and Splenda, which are horrendous liver limiters, are forbidden in other countries around the world!  Did you know that various flu viruses feed off sugar in the cells to proliferate? Getting off sugar is one of the hardest addictions because it is everywhere - but for your own good, start reading the labels...

Using a sugar-substitute is not the answer either. Did you know that aspertame is even in chewing gum now - both the sugar-free and NON sugar-free types! And aspertame does not leave the body easily - unless you know what to do - it creates a toxin that keeps building up and arresting the liver's function. Here is one solution I found: Dr. Janet Hull - you might want to take some time to read this link. Here is another recent (2012) link about a study of the effects of aspartame on the brain. If you are thinking drinking a can of diet soda can't be that bad - think again!
Here's what they found:
- 42 percent higher leukemia risk in men and women (pooled analysis)
- 102 percent higher multiple myeloma risk (in men only)
- 31 percent higher non-Hodgkin  lymphoma risk (in men only)

If you think switching to sugar-sweetened sodas is an improvement, it apparently is not. The soda ingredient is just generally bad for you.

A rare double rainbow awhile ago... hopeful only if one
is awaiting, and wanting, rain. We have had plenty.

I discussed once before the issues I have with water flouridation and how horrible it is for liver function as well. Since I have been living in South America, I have lost over 30 pounds! Part of it is due to eating more fresh fruits and vegetables and NEVER using a microwave for anything. And, to the best of my knowledge, the water in the local city is not flouridated at all.

For those of you who are using a microwave to heat up things, are you aware that those precious nutrients in the food you cooked before in the oven or on the stove are, once in the microwave oven,  being permanently altered by the microwaves? This is making the food or water (at best) hot stuff to eat and (at worst) changing the structure from nutritious to toxic for you.

Margaret on her blog reminds us regularly that using natural supplements, in most cases, enhances certain treatments for MM or the bones being attacked by MM. I am not a doctor nor a nutritionist, but I am aware that when we eat foods that are most closely connected to their origin (not in packaging with convoluted ingredient lists) we fare better.

In line with that, here is a recent list from the Environmental Working Group of the 15 best foods to eat because they are relatively free from pesticides: "Clean Fifteen" list: Onions, sweet corn, pineapples, avocado, asparagus, sweet peas, mangoes, eggplant, cantaloupe, kiwi, cabbage, watermelon, sweet potatoes, grapefruit, and mushrooms. NOTE: Margaret recently reported (June 9th) that asparagus is high in a certain enzyme that is not beneficial for those with certain cancers.
Items listed as being list of "dirty" produce are celery, strawberries, peaches, spinach, nectarines (imported), grapes (imported), sweet bell peppers, potatoes, blueberries, lettuce, and kale/collard greens because they are most likely covered with pesticides.

There are a couple of MM sufferers who have eschewed (pardon the pun) traditional chemotherapies and gone their own way to find a solution. Margaret spoke of one this last week who has accomplished huge success but has been tormented by various organizations for his claims. I have read of another who is taking taking PolyMva and has also achieved a kind of remission from what I can determine.

It is not my objective to foster false hopes. But I do continue to believe that organic foods along with quality supplements and other elements combined, especially the water we drink every day, can make a huge difference in our health. So I don't know if this has been helpful, but what I want on this day of the eclipse is to wish all my readers better health!

Who's reading this blog, anyhow?

Once in awhile I review the 'stats' on Blogger to see which articles are the most read or where the audience comes from. I started out writing this blog as a window on the world for a couple of people who were in the hospital with Multiple Myeloma (MM), a blood plasma cancer which is considerably more terminal than life itself. Some people with it have had Stem Cell Transplants (STCs) either with their own cells (autologous) or someone else's (allo) and some have had both or none and lots of chemo or medications. Knowing these treatments can create isolation for the patients (needed because of compromised immune systems) I wanted to bring in a little fresh air and fresh thoughts.

So my objective when I started was to provide some entertainment, different views of the world, and also to give my family some idea of where I was and what I was doing. I still try to meet my objectives and from some of the readers, it would appear I am doing that.

Three abandoned kittens were left in a carton near my casa.

But a couple of weeks ago when I looked at those 'stats,' I was surprised to see one (1) reader came from Burkina Faso. How many of you already know where that is? It used to be the Republic of Upper Volta when it was ruled by France in the western part of Africa, but their independence changed the name which now means "Men standing upright," or "Men of  Honor" and 'father's house,' a compilation of the two languages stemming from that country. Thanks to Wikipedia, you can find out more information on the link provided.

This was quite a surprise to me, and the reader never left a comment, so I have no idea what prompted him or her to stop by. (The statistics do not show me when the readers read a piece where they are from, only that on one day there were six or seven readers and over a week they were from five or six countries.) Was it a woman from Burkina who was frustrated with a country motto of "Unity, Progress, Justice" but finds her countryMEN less than enthusiastic about giving her a voice? I will probably never know unless that reader comes back.

What I also learned from Wikipedia is that the Burkinabes are fed up with a President who has a private plane and who has become very wealthy in 23 years of ruling the country and the people want the wealth to be more evenly distributed. Apparently there have been riots since February 2011 and as recently as April 28 when they held another protest seeking redress of their grievances. Have you read about this anywhere?

A few of my readers are ex-pats-to-be who want to know what it is like to live here, some are future travelers to Colombia realizing that it is no less dangerous than a supermarket in Arizona, USA, because there are crazy people with insane objectives all over the world and it seems to be a matter of timing as to whether or not you end up involved in that craziness.

I know I have more than a few readers who have MM, or their caregivers, people I have come to know as a consequence of a relative developing it. I have learned a lot about the disease from their blogs and become part of their blog family providing words of comfort or cheering on the sidelines when something is working and receiving the same here.

To me this audience is the most important because they have taught me that living life and writing about it is a day-to-day experience. Everyone has challenges to face and a timeline - known or unknown - in which to deal with it. 

Yesterday we had a 4.9 earthquake only 24 kilometers away. I really felt the shaking this time and so did Scott, the other artist's dog on the property. He was anxious and clingy all day afterwards.

Today I learned that Harmon Killebrew, 73, a nationally known ball player, has announced his plans to enter Hospice after a failed attempt to overcome cancer. I met this man in Boise, Idaho when I worked for a foundation that held a special event to honor native-born Idahoans. I don't really 'know' him well, not even an acquaintance. But his decision to live his life in whatever time he has left without further combat is a bold move and I can understand and sympathize with that choice. 

It was the mention of his name combined with yesterday's earthquake that caused me to reflect today on my own life and history and the importance of living... and giving what can be given. I hope my readers find the gifts offered up. And if you only like cat pictures, these are for you.

I decided to keep this little girl. Her name is "Sombra," or
"Shadow" in English. She is very small. The other kittens
were given to a pet store to find them homes.

On BEING an artist

One thing I have learned from The Artist’s Way, referred to by those of us who are actively following that path as TAW, is that BEING an artist is given to everyone. It is a gift from the Creator, but not everyone wishes to unwrap the package and find out what is inside.

I have been a risk-taker most of my life. I have fallen in love, been married, had children (a huge risk, in my opinion), traveled to many places, been active in various sports and learned new languages. Many of my friends have given me nicknames to show their appreciation/awe/fear/jealousy of my adventures. More than once I have heard someone say, “I wish I could do what you are doing....”

Anibal Moreno, an artist from Bogota, reminds me how
to stretch the canvas in preparation for putting my sketch
on it and making it into an oil painting. Anibal is also
my neighbor, living in the cottage on the property.

So it is with being creative and being an artist. It is about DOING it. It has nothing to do with whether one is gifted enough to be entitled to a particular creative act... because it is not enough to have the gift if the package is never opened.

There are a number of acquaintances I have made through MM and what a vibrant and creative bunch they all are! One has come up with a way to motivate people to raise funds and awareness about MM, another sends out endearing handmade ‘buddies,’ many know of the sensitive poetry that Susie has produced and made into a book, "A Power Within - Poems of Love," while others are sewing and knitting dervishes or advertising executives or pianists or playing the saxophone and so it goes. 

How can I be less creative when I have such shining examples before me? I am not sure if it was the threat of MM so close in my family that made me decide to take yet another leap into a new culture and to really focus my creative energies. But here I am, and here’s what I did this week: made cookies with local ingredients, had a ceramics class, got some oil painting instruction, had a Gestault session to free up my art spirit, wrote a poem in Spanish, went to a new theatre group gathering and took some more photographs. Oh, and discussed plans for the local chorus group to be re-activated.

This is the preliminary work. I think I will call it just
"Window," or in Spanish, "Ventana."

Being retired has its benefits, but there are pockets of time for any individual who wants to take the risk to open the package. Kids just naturally want to rip open the box to find out what is inside and try playing with it. When we ‘get more mature,’ we forget about how to play. I guess I’m just too curious and too willing to try something new... except for jumping out of perfectly good airplanes, BK! I may have to get a little bit older before I want to try that.

The bowl on the left was my first one and I have since
removed some of the fingerprints on the one to the
right. Today I dipped them in colors! The ladies here
are also taking the class, but are much more advanced.

I recently wrote on a website for artists’ that fear is the biggest obstacle to success and being afraid to dream of success means one doesn’t dare have hope of overcoming the fear. Margaret recently wrote about the need for cancer patients to have hope...(scroll down the link to that title.) and my friend BK has written about hope as well. It is essential for life. And being creative is part of the energy that makes life worth living... for whatever time we have left, because no one knows when the Green Door will open for them.

A Month In the Country

Just as the sun was setting, I was getting ready to have a
look at a house that was for rent, but the owner was not
readily available.

It seems hard to believe a month has passed and I am beginning to count the days until I head back to the NW to start to sort out my life in the U.S. I had a long conversation with my host tonight about the various aspects of "control" and how my life seems very much "out of control" with no particular plan. When I started on this journey, it all seemed to be so clear and now I have no road map, hauntingly similar to what those with MM face as they try to make sense of unfamiliar territory and language.

So tonight I simply sat and watched the sun go down, knowing that tomorrow is another day with new challenges, new ideas, new activities. Like Scarlett in "Gone With The Wind," I have decided not to think about it now, "I shall think about it tomorrow."

And, now just as I am writing this, another surprise from Madre Tierra... more rain - I can hear it on the clay roof, sometimes quite intense and with thunder. This always changes things, because with lots of rain the roads become impassable again. So any plans made have to be adjusted and modified.

Now I really will have to wait to to see what tomorrow morning brings when I get up and assess the weather. One thing is certain, the weather is definitely not within my control!

Finally there was a night's end without rain, so I sat and
quietly watched the sun set and the delicate colors that
Madre Tierra was painting for my pleasure.

The Swim is Over

Some of the MM bloggers and caregivers
will remember "Andre" and I didn't
want him forgotten, either.

It's hard to believe the Swim Across America event here in Seattle is over and I only have a few hours before grabbing onto the wings of an east-bound plane for Atlanta, GA, and then head south to Colombia.

I was there again at Luther Burbank Park at 6 a.m. ready to volunteer. It was dark and cool and I had to drive through several patches of rain so it was just plain good fortune that it didn't rain during the event.

The turnout of swimmers was bigger than last year with 200 jumping into water temperatures that would send more than a shiver up your back. According to the announcer at the end, the fund-raising for Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA) was better than the year before, too. That is good news because they are working very hard on research related to the immune system and these funds will help to support that effort.

I found this sign somewhat amusing given the numbers
of people (200) who were swimming for this event.
Actually there were over 50 people on the water watching
out for the swimmers - police, rescue personnel and volunteer
kayakers and boaters to ensure a safe outcome.

Some of the volunteers were on the water, some were dishing out food (me), some were handing out packets and tee shirts and afterwards there were a lot who were doing clean-up. As my daughter remarked, "We couldn't swim without all the help that's provided." It was fun, and I wouldn't have missed seeing my oldest beat her own time by a couple of minutes over last year. Good going!!

This year the cooler temperatures made the hot sausages, hot quiche, hot pancakes and the rich whipped cream and strawberries, cookies, cup cakes and cream cheese a veritable feast for all who attended. If food is a motivator, this year it sure surpassed all expectations! Families and friends picnicked together after the racing was done and listened to announcements and successes in the fundraising efforts. The numbers aren't all in yet, but they definitely already showed an increase over 2009. One team of four women raised $7,000, winning the "Best Effort Award."

One of the on-water volunteers was taking his dog with him. "She loves to go with me," he said. But in this first photo, he is trying to tell her she has to move to the front and she has already loaded on, being very careful to keep her feet dry, having determined that the cold water wasn't something she wanted too much of.

In the second photo he had gently taken her by the collar and pretty much forced her to move to the front spot. I loved the expression on her face which seemed to say, "I don't agree with you, but if you say so."

And then in this final photo she seems to have resigned herself to the new position and is watching some of the activities on shore as her owner paddles out to the race area.

The Half-milers begin their swim at 8:30 a.m. and a few managed to finish
just as the Two-milers were coming into the gates as well.

The leading swimmers in the Two-Mile race began hitting the gate at 39 and 40 minutes (having started at slightly after 8 a.m.) which means that they were swimming a mile in 20 minutes!!! That is churning up some water!!! The Half-Milers were swimming pretty well by putting themselves through the gate after about 25-30 minutes. Nothing to be ashamed of!

About 9:30 the sun began to break through the heavy clouds and as the remainder of the swimmers came onto the beach from both races, the early arrivers were getting toweled off and warmed back up.

There are too many who are in this MM fight... I was sad
that they limited the numbers of flags we could post.

I posted some prayer flags for a few of the MM folks I know who are having a particularly tough time, but I was limited in the number of flags so I just want to say that although your name might not have appeared to be waving in the breeze, I was still thinking of you and your caregivers and hope you know this was not meant as any kind of slight. And while I wasn't 'swimming,' for the cure, I did what I could to support those who were.

These are the leader swimmers rounding the last mark on their two-mile
Swim Across America in less than 40 minutes!

'Godwillin' and the crick don't rise,' I will be back next year to do my small part in helping to raise awareness, funds and energy to this event.

The red, white and blue balloons of Swim Across America
blow in the gentle breeze off Lake Washington in Seattle.