What a perfect day to end 2010. An incredible sunrise, with pinks, purples and blues, on this frosty winter morning, followed by yoga, a very green smoothie, and a wood delivery to keep me stocked in wood for a good long while to come (and the main purpose, to keep me warm during power outages!). My job for the rest of the day is to stack the wood, a task I enjoy as a meditation: a good time to practice the mindfulness of focusing entirely on what you’re doing while you’re doing it.
I am ending the year with a promise to myself to let go of cancer. I am no longer a cancer patient. Cancer will always be a part of my life (it’s been a part of my life since I was 16 and my mother died of cancer), but I don’t have to let it run my life anymore. The entire second half of this year was devoted to it and I’m done giving it time and energy. I am doing a few things in 2011 that are related to it - going to a cancer healing program in February, participating in a study on ovarian cancer screening, getting my semi-annual MRI/mammogram combo, and of course, continuing my new anti-cancer diet and other new healthy habits. But I am doing these things not as a cancer patient, but as a healthy person who wants to prevent cancer. Yes!
This year, I learned to face one of my biggest fears, and I learned that I have a lot of strength. I reconnected with some family in a big way, found out just how wonderful my friends are, spent lots of time taking care of myself, and appreciated every day of being alive. I will carry all of this goodness with me into 2011. For all these wonderful gifts, I am truly grateful.
Happy New Year!
Super-duper Green Smoothie
- 2 stalks kale
- 1 pear, frozen overnight, then thawed about an hour before processing
- 1/2 small cucumber
- coconut water
- 1 tbsp spirulina
- 1 tbsp bee pollen
- 1 tbsp chia seeds
- 1 tbsp protein powder
Throw everything in the Vita-mix and blend! Yum.
