When I started this blog waaay back when, I was more cognizant of death and its one-dimensional, looming presence than I was with life and all its concommittant joy and complexities. Those dreaded words “you have cancer” were etched into my soul with a burning, white-hot, putrid-smelling acid. Nothing compared with that stomach-churning, sweaty-cold realization that that diagnosis was mine, not my mother’s, not my neighbor’s, not my friend’s friend, but mine and mine alone. A darkness descended that permeated all that was good in my life, despite my very conscious efforts to dispel it, even if just for little windows of time. My life was forever changed.
Fast forward…five years…to be able to personally affirm the old adage that hindsight is a beautiful thing. I am one of the fortunate ones to have survived surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and years of suffering to look in the rearview mirror and realize that this journey was perhaps the single best thing that could have ever happened to me. Really and truly. Right after the diagnosis, I tapped into my spiritual side with full force and intention. My angels sent me a guide to facilitate my awakening…love and blessings to Stephen in Sedona. 
My husband traded places with me (he’s a 2-time survivor, bless his soul) to nurture and support me through the less than glamorous rites of cancer passage. We are both better, more loving and forgiving people, and closer soul mates than I could have ever imagined possible. We are grateful to wake every morning to behold the most breathtaking vista from our Costa Rican coffee finca. The clouds roll through the valley with an ethereal calmness before the sun rises to burn them away to reveal the vibrant rainforest terrain. I feel blessed to say that the most stress we feel nowadays comes from our momentary lapses into the alternative reality known as US politics.
So, we have chosen a vegan lifestyle as part of our pro-active, DIY health regimen. We are both cancer-free and drug-free (much to the dismay of Big Pharma and the Mayo back in the states). We now fully embrace the vegan lifestyle for the benefits to the enviroment and the elimination of cruelty to animals as well as our own “selfish” interests. Funny how that works 🙂 So many of our friends view the vegan diet as an unfathomable impossiblity. Kind of strange to prefer the ingestion of multiple pills per day with a myriad of side effects to plant-based foods…? No judgment, just saying.
We are conscious of our every moment now, in a good, non-obsessive way. We choose to travel and embrace life in the present as much as possible because that’s what brings us joy. In the last 6 months we have travelled to Europe and Thailand…so life affirming and enriching. I experienced a wonderful epiphany when we went scuba diving in Phuket, which was the first time in ten years I had put a tank on my back and descended into the cool, fish-infested waters of the ocean. After cancer, I thought I would never enjoy that experience again. Too old? Too tired? Too…what?! It’s like riding a horse, sort of. So, I got back on that sucker and went for it, with fabulous results. I don’t want to ever limit my life again with artificial obstacles. One, glorious day at a time.
Love and light
Mar. 11, 2017
Judy Richter 