Dancing in limbo

I just finished reading a book called, Dancing In Limbo. It’s written by two female cancer survivors for people who have finished cancer treatment and are left to deal with the unanticipated emotional fallout. I highlighted the heck out of the book because there was so much in it that I could relate to. Cancer survivors are often caught off guard when they finish treatment because everyone expects them to be happy that it’s over and they can now “get on with life.” However, it’s common for survivors to experience a sort of “post-traumatic stress” reaction. Now that they are no longer doing something proactive about the cancer, fear of recurrence sets in. The grief that one normally experiences with this type of thing has been postponed in order to psychologically gear up for getting through treatment. Once it’s done, the grief, realization of what has been lost, and depression set in.

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Calendula cream: my new best friend

I now have two weeks of radiation under my belt and things are going swimmingly (well, mostly). I met with Dr. K. on Wednesday and he remarked that most people turn a little pink from the radiation at this point. I rejoiced that slathering on calendula cream three times a day had paid off. Wait. The very next day I got home after my treatment and noticed an area on my chest that looked like someone had drawn on me with a large-tip pink marker. Interestingly enough, the radiation technicians actually DO draw on me with grape-scented (purple) or cherry-scented (red) markers every day in order to line me up with the machine properly (and they sometimes fight over who gets to draw on me—it’s rather amusing). When I tried to wash off the markings, I realized it was an actual burn. Youch! So I got busy with the cream again and things look a little better.

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St. Theophan the Recluse

Becoming an Orthodox Christian has made profound changes in my life. My spirituality as a Protestant evangelical was mostly based on an intellectual approach to God (and sometimes emotional). It’s hard to explain the difference, but Orthodoxy is so much more . . . holistic. The Orthodox faith is not mechanical or legalistic. It is therapeutic. One of the great tools I have been given in Orthodoxy is to become familiar with the fathers of the Christian faith. One of them who has a special place in my heart is a guy named "Theophan the Recluse.” Here’s a passage I love from, What Is The Spiritual Life and How to Attune Onself to It (herein he counsels a young woman on arranging her life):

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