Romans 12:1-2 (King James Version)

1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

“While we are influenced by circumstances, we, too, can have an influence.” – Jonas Salk

My 5th round of chemo is complete, which means I am 5 steps closer to being cancer-free. My mind is filled with wonderful memories and special places that I can go to in the middle of challenging moments, like entering the MRI machine or being poked with needles and pins leading to the chemo drip. Taking deep slow breaths and guided imagery have been Godsends for me. Even in what feels like the “dark night of my soul”, I find and choose joy!

Above all remedies for fear, worry, doubt and frustration, God’s Word is the best medicine ministering to me continuously. My friend Sonara shared this wonderful, timely devotion below confirming this very fact: the Word is for me – Water and Nourishment for my Heart, Mind, Body and Soul. I am revived and refreshed by it every single time I dip or dive in deeply!

I had my first press and curl at age eight. When I took a peek in the mirror at the new me, I was so disappointed that I did not resemble the Breck Girl in all the magazine ads. That may explain why some of the girls at my school looked shocked, shaking their heads, hoping I could have lived up to the Pantene-flowing-in-the-wind look I had so proclaimed I’d have.

Just 9 days ago, on April 10, my last lock fell. It was clearly time for a new hairstory in the making! To get a full buzz and see the hairs standing on top of my head like tweety bird, made me laugh. Then I noticed the shape of my head, which had never been seen, even at birth I had a head full of hair. The first comments received were very, very gracious and kind. I decided it would be okay to go out in public without the scarf, and did so.

I had the honor of serving on the World Health Week Committee last week with the amazing Dr. Hiba! We had so much fun together, and it got me thinking a lot about what we consume on a daily basis and how we can better take care of our bodies.

Making peace with food and our bodies is more about what we say “yes” to, rather than all the “no’s” or “I can’t have that’s”. It’s a process that calls for intentional mind, body and soul care practices. Process has nothing to do with perfection – process is an attempt to manage stressors in life with greater ease, acknowledge discomfort and make decisions to do something different in a moment. Total balance is impossible to sustain, yet being in the pursuit of balancing all of the pulls, purposes and passions within our lives can propel us towards sound minds, healthy bodies and spirit filled lifestyles.

Blessed to be in the land of beautiful people – Ethiopia!

What an amazing warm, gracious welcome from Saada and her family. Her brother picked me up from the airport and then gave us his driver for the length of my stay at Hotel Siyonat.

It has been such a healing blessing; being with wonderful people, eating nourishing food (a vegan buffet at the Taitu Hotel!), standing on the very ground where King Menelik II and Queen Taitu fought and won the battle of Adwa, learning how Queen Taitu changed the name of the capital city from Entoto to Addis Ababa (which means “new flower”), as well a more about the traditions at cultural restaurant Yod Abyssinia, and traveling to the countryside, meeting Saada’s father and seeing where she grew up, meeting her husband’s niece (enjoying Ethiopian hospitality at each stop), then on to a spa by Lake Kuriftu was all so magical and Divinely ordered.

A Word from HEART MIND BODY SOUL CARE (HMBSC)
Supporting Healthy Hearts, Sound Minds, Healthy Bodies and Spirit-filled Lifestyles

For Sistah Women who travailed,
took deep breaths and then exhaled,
Today we light a candle,
for all they do and handle,
To each one answering the call,
with hopeful ideas that say it all:

We are engaging in deep meaningful,
purposeful, edifying conversations
through the power of Nommo,
the generative and productive power of
spoken word and poetry,
among women all over the world.

Time is healer, time is a circle, it’s
healing circle time. Put your pain on paper,
give your brain a break, go deep within, get
clarity and perspective; go experience
the cleansing power of the pen!