Meat Free Monday
Today’s recipe is a repost from a few months ago. It features watercress, one of the oldest known leaf vegetables consumed by human beings. It contains significant amounts of iron, calcium and folic acid,… Continue reading
You never think it will be you. You go about your days making plans, imagining futures, dreaming ordinary dreams. Life feels steady, predictable. And then it isn’t. One phone call. One scan. One… Continue reading
In 1948, two French scientists noticed something unexpected in their lab samples: fragments of DNA drifting in blood plasma. At the time, the discovery seemed trivial, even puzzling. DNA, after all, was supposed… Continue reading
You’ve likely heard people talk about “chemo brain”—or maybe you’ve even felt it yourself. It’s that foggy sensation that can make it tough to find the right word, recall a friend’s name, or… Continue reading
So few grains of happiness measured against all the dark and still the scales balance. – Jane Hirshfield “The Weighing” I’ve been reflecting on these lines from Jane Hirshfield’s poem The Weighing and how its… Continue reading
In many cultures, greetings are often seen as polite and routine exchanges. However, in some Muslim cultures, there exists a profound dimension to these everyday interactions. When someone asks, “How are you?” in… Continue reading
I discovered that today, September 16th is ‘Tattoo Story Day’. While I am not sure if this is a day that’s universally marked, it gives me the prompt I need to tell the… Continue reading
Checking my August Awareness Day Calendar, I discovered that today, August 30th is designated as Grief Awareness Day. Sometimes I feel we are awash with grief in our community. Not just in our… Continue reading
Are you looking for a new job after cancer treatment? Perhaps you left your last employment after your diagnosis, or maybe you are still in your current job but want a fresh start… Continue reading
“In a society which is much more inclined to help you hide your pain rather than to grow through it, is necessary to make a very conscious effort to mourn.” – Henri Nouwen Grief… Continue reading
T for this week’s round-up of the best of the blog posts which I’ve read over the past week. These are the posts that have moved me, taught me something, inspired me, and which I’ve wanted to share with you. Don’t forget if you have written a post which you would like readers to see, just […]
The Thing Is to love life, to love it evenwhen you have no stomach for itand everything you’ve held dearcrumbles like burnt paper in your hands,your throat filled with the silt of it.When… Continue reading
The Butterfly Effect For Marie Ennis O’Connor So close and still Quietly far away From the company Who chose you The day you heard The word we all Heard. Echoes In a canyon… Continue reading
26 posts. 26 days. 26 letters of the alphabet, one blog post beginning with each letter. H is for Hair I started this blog a few years after my breast cancer diagnosis and… Continue reading
Today’s recipe is a repost from a few months ago. It features watercress, one of the oldest known leaf vegetables consumed by human beings. It contains significant amounts of iron, calcium and folic acid,… Continue reading
The eight unexplained symptoms most closely linked to cancer have been highlighted by researchers at Keele University. The team also points to the age at which patients should be most concerned by the… Continue reading
Christine Murphy-Whyte Yesterday I attended the funeral of Christine Murphy-Whyte. It was understandably a sad occasion, but also a celebration of her life and the legacy she leaves behind. Her influence extended beyond… Continue reading
It is with the deepest sadness that I write of the passing of Christine Murphy Whyte, chairperson of Europa Donna Ireland, the Irish Breast Cancer Campaign. Christine was a tireless campaigner for evidence-based, best practice… Continue reading
I was looking through the archive of poems here for one that speaks particularly to me during this difficult time, and I found myself lingering on Rumi’s The Guest House. I am very… Continue reading
I am reposting this from last December. I have just returned from a hospital admission for another miscarriage this week and I wanted to repost by way of explanation for why I… Continue reading
Florence Nightingale, who died 100 years ago this week, is popularly remembered as “the Lady with the Lamp” (from her habit of making rounds at night), who did heroic work nursing wounded soldiers… Continue reading
I came across a recipe for this light summery salad recently and thought it sounded delicious. Unfortunately our Irish summer seems to have disappeared but if it makes a reappearance these grilled peaches,… Continue reading
If you want to be interesting, be interested. If you want to be heard, listen. If you wish to truly learn, teach. If you would like to be wealthy, be generous. If you… Continue reading
Today’s Poetry Friday is a little different. Instead of a poem, I have a prayer, the words of which I wish for all of you. Make Me Strong in Spirit Make me strong in… Continue reading