The Traveling Book Continues
Meeting wonderful Survivors & Supporters Everywhere...
Meet Debby Shifflet
of
Costa Mesa, California
As always as with anyone signing the book, I was so excited to send the book to Debby! Debby is a beautiful person, who has survived cancer, a tougher then normal ordeal with cancer and has come out, as you can see from the photo, smiling and living life!!
I had the wonderful opportunity to meet Debby at the AWOL (A Way of Life After Cancer) Retreat. She and many others, along with just the truly amazing weekend at this retreat, is what made me want to sponsor this non-profit. I could see first hand, the change in myself and others as the weekend went on.
Debby and I, along with two other wonderful gals (Cindy & Dawn) all shared a room and adjoining rooms. We had so much fun and became instant friends from the start! We all shared our battle stories, our worries, our concerns, what we had been through and where we wanted to go. It was amazing and just left me feeling free and more at peace!
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| Me, Debby and Dawn at AWOL Retreat |
But Debby, she was an inspiration! She had traveled through cancer, had some tough times with her surgeries, with her healing, with the treatment and just came through it all so peaceful, so inspiring, she even made me feel the same. It was a moment in life that you knew, you were right where you were suppose to be.
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| Debby, Dawn, Me and Cindy (showing off her t-shirt design) at AWOL |
So not only was the retreat a success as far as making me deal, feel, relax and move through life with a better understanding, but the friends I made will always warm my heart! And Debby will always be one of them!
As I was asking Debby about how she felt about cancer and what she wanted me to share in this blog, I think she said it best in her own words:
"I have found that my life has been enriched by this journey, I no longer worry about what life will throw my way. My life has always been filled with events that made me wonder "why", not "why me", just why? I still don't know the answer to that question and never will, but one thing I do know is that I can overcome. When I was diagnosed with cancer, the support and love of friends and family provided me with the strength to accept the outcome, whatever that might be. Not to be mistaken by giving up, but another opportunity for me to find my inner peace and strength and climb on board this ride with my eyes wide open. There in lies the acceptance."
As a writer, as a survivor, I could have not said it better myself!
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| Debby with her son To a truly amazing women! You will always have my respect and friendship! Thanks for sharing your spirit with all of us! As you can see from the photos above, AWOL is truly an amazing retreat for cancer survivors! Any donations will help them continue to enrich lives! http://www.chrysalistowings.com/ In memory of a Beautiful Daughter Carmen Marie (Flores) Coney October 1968 - February 2010 Her beautiful spirit will travel the world with the book, forever touching the lives of others! |
