CAN CANCER PATIENTS USE CREATIVITY TO HEAL?



My painting of The Reefs Resort, Bermuda

 Here's a question for cancer patients -- does your imagination affect how you see your cancer?

If so, can you use it in positive ways to improve your life and help you manage your cancer?

Artists train themselves in perspective, color, but more importantly, in the use of light.

If you look at some of the great artists, if you think about what you see, you realize that there is perspective of the subject painted, and color, too. But what usually stays with you most is the light. How does the sun fall on that field of snow, creating shadows? How does the moon affect the colors of the street cafe and the customers? Where does that apple get the gleam upon its colorful skin?

Light is often a mysterious, yet fascinating element. It directs our attention, and without it, we are left in the dark.

Where you focus your attention during cancer matters. If you see only darkness, you will miss the joy. If you only feel the loss that cancer brings to your life, you will never know the richness of the experience. You won't see the love, the support, or the opportunities you still have, if all you see is a lack of future to come.

Living with cancer is all about understanding that you may not have another ten years, but neither may anyone else. It's important to live for today and tomorrow and next week and next month. It's important to get treated and to live as well as you can. If you embrace life with the same passion as an artist, you will create the moments that you can build upon. Make what you have matter more than what you don't have. Find the beauty here and now and appreciate how it enriches your life. Gather these together, because they are precious. These are your pearls. Wear them in better health.