The sky's the limit.
The Cielem’el Survival and Growth Journal evolved out of two web logs I have maintained over time.
Begun in 2009 when I was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 32, The Cielem’el Cancer Journal documented my trials, tribulations, and spiritual growth during breast cancer treatment, with information on the diagnoses, surgeries, chemotherapy treatments, radiation, and hormone therapy treatments, as well as all the personal and professional life stuff that still goes on throughout living a life with cancer. As a breast cancer survivor, I endeavor to inspire other young women like myself to fully engage and manage their cancer and treatments, and know that there are many women out there who are experiencing a similarly challenging emotional journey. Life doesn’t stop because you have cancer, it just gets more challenging.
About a year after finishing radiation, while still posting to The Cielem’el Cancer Journal, I started posting The Cielem’el Personal & Spiritual Growth Blog, which focused more clearly on areas of personal growth, self-development, and spiritual growth. My life journey and growth as a person neither began nor ended with cancer, and the Personal Growth blog was more of a continual journal of life experiences and learnings along my ongoing life journey beyond cancer. The journey honestly began when I was a newborn, shuffled and abused in multiple foster homes before being adopted by absolutely wonderful parents, and my life journey, consciously and continuously seeking personal growth, self development, and spiritual growth continues to evolve.
Over time it became clear that these two subjects cannot be divorced and maintained separately, because it is everything together that makes my web log what it is, meaning, an online journal of life experiences, survival, and growth from the perspective of someone who has survived multiple severe life trials and nurtured a conscious approach to personal and spiritual growth and self development. Hence, The Cielem’el Survival & Growth Journal. :)
Cameron got the bejeebers scared out of him on the tube we pulled behind the boat. He was riding with Eric, so it’s not like he was in any danger, but he started screaming when the bottom of the raft came off. Eric held Cameron up, he was barely touching the water, but he was still all upset. He didn’t […]
Continue reading »It’s 10:30AM of the first morning here and I’m sitting alone in the living room typing on my blackberry wondering if there’s any way I can leave early, or if maybe I can skip out altogether to go somewhere away from the drama. I’m just trying to lay low and stay out of people’s way and play with the kids […]
Continue reading »Got the cats to the kennel then was early to the house on the lake so I did a little jeeping before checking in and figuring out where to put my stuff. The house was really cool except for being really close to the road (right outside my bedroom window). Everyone else got there about 5PM when I was doing […]
Continue reading »Uff da, I started working at 7AM and kept going until 9:30PM with one half hour break. But that worked out perfect because I had just enough time to get ready to go out with Laura. I met up with her at Mac’s in Mountain Iron, where Blitzkreig was playing. All these years, and who’s the live band? The same […]
Continue reading »Johnny V. came into town a little early, and as soon as my conference call was over, we met up. First he took me on a tour around town, reminding me where things were, where things used to be, and we talked on and on about people we knew and what he knew about where they ended up. Then we […]
Continue reading »So I’m walking through the woods, and I see a tree. (Sounds pretty normal, so far, eh? Aside from the fact that I actually saw hundreds of trees, of course.) The tree is along the walking trail I have that follows the borderlines of my property. And in this tree, at just about eye level, is . . . a […]
Continue reading »Well my cardiologist is thrilled, that’s the good news from the doctor appointment this week. Man, it still seems like I go to the doctor constantly, every month it’s someone for some checkup or another. Sigh. But, anyway, my cardiologist is happy because I didn’t have to get adriamyacin chemo, which damages the heart, my heart medicine seems to be […]
Continue reading »OMG, that was sooooo worth cramming the drive into one day and being here three nights early! I hadn’t seen my cousin in YEARS, and we just had the best time having dinner tonight, she and I and her fiancé. What a fun couple. And yes, I will definitely go to the family reunion next summer now. 🙂
Continue reading »Argh, ridiculously long day, I started working at 5AM, it’s been twelve hours so far and I really need to do another three hours or so of work tonight. Which isn’t bad really, I could be in bed by ten and asleep by midnight. It’s a week to release, which is always just an insane time for me, coordinating stuff […]
Continue reading »I had an appointment with the surgeon today. Let me start off by saying that the most exciting moment of my day was when I had to stop the car on the way there to wait for a chicken to cross the road. I kid you not! So, nothing exciting from the surgeon. I told him I’m still sore and […]
Continue reading »Nostalgia is a strange thing. I can’t explain why, but high school has been on my mind lately. Maybe it’s because High School Musical (1, 2, and 3) was on TV this weekend and I kept seeing it in the movie list. Maybe it’s because I’ve been thinking about my life and how many times it’s changed so completely. Even […]
Continue reading »OK, my two cents on Dancing with the Stars . . . 1. It is a reality TV show first, popularity contest second, dance competition third. 2. The first season I saw (season 2?) the real winner got robbed. Actually, I think there have been at least three seasons where I thought the real winner got robbed, but season 2 […]
Continue reading »I played my flute this afternoon, at a neighbor’s music party. It was a nice little party; I didn’t play any difficult music. And then this piano player who was there, well, it turns out she’s really an outstanding accompanist and she could sight read the piano parts to my easy flute solos, so we did a little of that […]
Continue reading »I want to write, honestly I do. But I’m so tired. Short version of the day is that I missed my alarm at 4:30AM, made the drive to Sac in 70 minutes, was ten minutes late meeting Susan at her nursing facility, walked a mile from parking to registration, wandered almost hopelessly for 40 minutes trying to find Susan, then […]
Continue reading »One good thing about the blackberry is that’s it’s handy for jotting down little thoughts or a quick blog at unexpected times and places. At the moment I’m in a sushi restaurant by myself already finished eating my share of the sushi Brian ordered and, finding that there’s not enough signal in here to surf, I’m clicking away, only occasionally […]
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