American Cancer Society Walk For Breast Cancer, 10/05/08This is the second year that we've taken part in the walk for Breast Cancer. The event itself is extremely evocative, for my family, and for all others afflicted. I talked with a woman today, who had been fighting the disease for seven years. She had a mastectomy, radiation, and several surgeries to combat the spread and growth of the cancer; in short, she was a trooper. She even added that before mastectomy, her husband was in complete support of the operation; eluding that he was in love with her as a whole, and not with a simple pound of flesh; prompting her to feel more comfortable and open to treatment. Unconditional love, the epitome of unconditional love. He loved her for every incorporeal element she possessed; her persona as a whole. He loved her enough to support her struggle to live, to give up that trivial section of the body. If all, it’s a symbol of how meaningless physical properties are in love. Love should be within parameters of the mind, not contours of the body.
During the walk today, like last year, I felt a certain lack of composure. Here my mother was, adorned in pink, garlanded with a sash, filled with exuberance. How selfless she was—always has been. To me, she is exemplary—a strong willed artist at heart, who has taken on and conquered a potentially life threatening disease. How can that be viewed in any other light, other than extraordinary? And there I was, standing there, brinking. It was graceless to show emotion, so I held my ground and continued. But oh, the strength... These garnered women around me had suffered so much, most of which were still struggling with their cancer. A five mile walk can conjure many thoughts—what if our situation was different.
So we came home. As I was putting together prints for U Hartford, panicking about the lack of charcoal drawings I had, she descends the stairs with a monstrous, plastic trash-bag full of poster sized drawings tucked under her arm. She showed me a few examples of her work to help me get a better idea of what a reviewer would expect, but the weight of the portfolio review subsided in my mind. Her drawings—they were stunning. Pastels and mostly charcoal drawings, all completely—I can’t find the words—I was awestruck.
To many, she is Mary; a wife and a mother of two. But she is so much more...
She is an artist, a survivor, a part time nurse and full time mother—an inspiration.
During the walk today, like last year, I felt a certain lack of composure. Here my mother was, adorned in pink, garlanded with a sash, filled with exuberance. How selfless she was—always has been. To me, she is exemplary—a strong willed artist at heart, who has taken on and conquered a potentially life threatening disease. How can that be viewed in any other light, other than extraordinary? And there I was, standing there, brinking. It was graceless to show emotion, so I held my ground and continued. But oh, the strength... These garnered women around me had suffered so much, most of which were still struggling with their cancer. A five mile walk can conjure many thoughts—what if our situation was different.
So we came home. As I was putting together prints for U Hartford, panicking about the lack of charcoal drawings I had, she descends the stairs with a monstrous, plastic trash-bag full of poster sized drawings tucked under her arm. She showed me a few examples of her work to help me get a better idea of what a reviewer would expect, but the weight of the portfolio review subsided in my mind. Her drawings—they were stunning. Pastels and mostly charcoal drawings, all completely—I can’t find the words—I was awestruck.
To many, she is Mary; a wife and a mother of two. But she is so much more...
She is an artist, a survivor, a part time nurse and full time mother—an inspiration.
Survival is the only option
1 comments:
Aw, what a nice little reflection about your mom! nice job ( = I didn't know she was an artist though?
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