My Ultimate Superhero

I was once a broken being: shattered, ridiculed and forgotten. Within me was a cry  to reach out to a loving hero who could ease the pain and made me whole again. I prayed  hard for that someone who could assure me that I wasnt just a mere debris of the past. The wait was long before a mighty hand rescued me. He did not only nourish this poor waif. He also painstakingly reshaped me magnificiently until I  was no longer my old self ! Yes, it  was impossible to see the traces of a disfigured, scattered me. Now I pass to you this wonderful thought: A heart may be broken but not abandoned. Tears may flow yet someday they’d make you glow. As long as you yearn, as long as you yield for Him. Like me He will come to you, in His time, He will tell you when and why. Like me He will embrace you. For this Mighty Man has a mighty heart who cannot help but pick up fragments like you and I.

Recollection

Years ago, I lost a person I deeply love. Everything seemed to fall apart that I lost sense of direction. I asked God why He allowed me to undergo such a terrible grief. I claimed I didnt deserve such misery for Ive been obedient  to His commandments. I blamed Him of my bitter plight and accused Him of playing favorites among His family. Obviously I placed myself the least among the rest of His citizens.

A good friend of mine, Danilo Gudelosao, and now a Supervisor of Science of Dep Ed Cebu, gave me a tape of Don Moen’s God Will Make A Way. The song was quite powerful yet its message didnt reach my heart.

Healing came very slowly and very quitely. Until now I dont know why it had to happen but the good thing was the realization that God didnt mean to hurt me and that He was not responsible of my miseries.

I will forever be sorry for wanting everything solved on my terms. For overly reacting to my sorrows, for demanding to much from God to come to my rescue, for refusing to see God’s will. Most of all, for questioning and blaming Him.

It is true that I have totally lost that person yet not for a lifetime but for the role I wanted him to play in my life. But his loss taught me to be more sensitive to others, to love unconditionally, and to let go… to let God. I have never cease loving this person up to this day. I just can’t while I’m still breathing. The good news is I now love him the way Christ loves me. Yes, I am fully emancipated from my cell. It is true that in loving I risk of getting hurt again but I know that God will be there to take me into His wings if He has to do it again.

Myths and Facts About Breast Cancer

       A diagnosis of breast cancer brings confusion, uncertainty, fear, and unsolicited advice and can make a woman feel she is losing self control of her life. One way a woman may regain control is to help make decisions about her treatment. To do this, she needs accurate information about treatment options and possible outcomes-not the old wives’ tale passed on by well-meaning but misguided acquaintances. We have identified the most common myths about breast cancer and given you the facts as well.

MYTH : Breast cancer incedence is low among Filipino women.

FACT: The Philippines has the highest incidence rate among Asian countries and number 9 worldwide.

MYTH: All breast cancers occur in the same structures of the breast.

FACT: The majority of breast cancers occur in the ducts of the breast, which connects the milk -producing glands  to the nipple. However, some breast cancers occur in the lobules, the milk producing glands of the breast.

MYTH: A woman has little or no risk of breast cancer if she has no family history of breast cancer.

FACT: More than 75% of women with cancer have no family history of the disease. Simply being female puts all women at risk.

MYTH: Estrogen cause breast cancer.

FACT: No data have shown that estrogens in birth control pills and estrogens given to women after menopause cause breast cancer. But, if a breast cancer is already present, estrogen may stimulate its growth.

MYTH: Breast cancer does not occur in young women.

FACT: Breast cancer is more common in women older than 5o, but it can and does occur in women of all ages.

MYTH: Women with large breasts have a greater risk of having cancer.

FACT: Size has no relation to risk. it is however, sometimes more difficult to examine large breasts because there is more tissue to mask a lump.

MYTH: Breast -feeding prevents cancer.

FACT: Breast-feeding has many benefits, but it reduces the risk of breast cancer very little, if at all.

MYTH: An injury to the breast can cause breast cancer.

FACT: Cancer is not caused by hurting or bruising the breast. But when a cancer is already present, it is often detected when a woman touches her breast after an injury.

MYTH: Mammography is painful and can harm the breast.

FACT: During mammography, the breast is compressed. Although this can be uncomfortable, it is not harmful to the breast and is usually not painful. Scheduling the mammogram after the menstrual period, when the breasts are less tender, will reduce discomfort.

MYTH: A breast cancer will always be painless.

FACT: Most early breast cancers do not hurt. However, some are associated with unusual sensations in the breast including soreness or burning.

MYTH: Most lumps in the breast are cancer.

FACT: Eight out of ten lumps are benign, or not cancerous. Most breast lumps are not cancer. However,  it is important to obtain a definite diagnosis instead of assuming that a lump is harmless.

MYTH: If the mammography report comes back as "negative", there is nothing else to worry about.

FACT: Mammograms do not show 10% to 15% of all breast cancers. Any suspicious mass must be further investigated.

MYTH: Removal of  entire breast is safer than segmental mastectomy and radiation therapy.

FACT: Survival is similar for patients who have breast-conserving therapy and those who undergo total or modified radical mastectomy.

MYTH: Women with a strong family history of breast cancer should not consider breast -conserving therapy.

FACT: A strong family history of breast cancer is not a contradiction to breast-conserving therapy. The decision about which treatment to use should take into account several factors such as stage of the breast cancer, body build and lifestyle.

MYTH: Once the lymph nodes are removed from the armpit, there will always be swelling of the arm.

FACT: Some women experience swelling of the affected arm (lymphedema). However, with less radical surgery, & careful attention to the proper use of the land and arm on the affected side, swelling is not common and usually not severe.

MYTH: Women should not have immediate breast reconstruction. It is best to wait a couple of years to make sure the cancer does not recur.

FACT: With proper surgical removal of the cancer in the breast, there is no reason to delay reconstruction in most patients. in fact, immediate reconstruction is often preferable since only one surgery is required & the cosmetic results can be better.

MYTH: Radiation therapy burns & destroys the skin of the breast.

FACT: The X-rays used to treat breast cancer can cause temporary redness of the skin much like a sunburn. This can be soothed with an ointment & diminishes after the completion of treatment.

MYTH: Women receiving radiation therapy should avoid physical contact with friends and family because of possible radioactivity.

FACT: The form of X-ray energy used to treat breast cancer does not linger in the body. Other than slight tenderness of the treated areas, there is no reason to avoid physical contact with others.

MYTH: A mammogram can cause breast cancer to spread.

FACT: An X-ray of the breast is called a mammogram. The X-ray and the pressure on the breast from the X-ray machine cannot cause cancer to spread.

MYTH: Women receiving radiation therapy should avoid physical contact with friends and family because of possible radioactivity.

FACT: The form of

Derek, The Apple of Our Eyes

          Derek is only  ten months old but he is already a real eye catcher!  This 9.8 pound baby became the  darling of the nurse’s station when he was born. They called him big, pretty boy. How could this bubbly toddler won the hearts of everyone in his sorroundings? Its his angelic, innocent, sweet smile that has mesmerized everybody. And its real! he simply looks candid no matter what’s his doing and eating. Derek has the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen in a babe.His captivating eyes tells all of what he is in- happy, sad, full, hungry, uncomfortable. Mind you, this robust boy has only few teeth but gee! he is so charming that one thinks his teeth are perfectly complete. He is not yet a year old and yet he eats a lot  almost everything edible  with so much gusto. Give him  chicharon and he’d bite and bite it until it tenders. And soon he starts to yawn. Yes, the tongue exercise makes him sleepy.Give him chocolates and he’d devour it and smear the rest of it on his face. After that, I can assure you that  he still remains so charming. Right now, he’s learning how to walk, talk, dance and how to use  and answer the phone. Derek, my nephew,  the apple of our eyes, is simply amazing!

Lemon grass, a cure for cancer?

Lemon grass is locally known to us Filipinos as tanglad.  I got this from a friend.  It’s the discovery about lemon grass and its healing effect for cancer patients. It’s quite a long read but if you have cancer or know anyone who has cancer, it can be a great help to you/them.

————————–

Discovery of a Cancer Patient
 
While I was undergoing chemotherapy for ovarian cancer, my oncologist,Dr. Cecilia Llave, suggested that I try tanglad (lemon grass) for a drink, a tip she got from one of her patients.

That’s what I have been doing the past three years. I don’t know if tanglad has something to do with it but so far I’m okay.

A few weeks ago, an article on the medicinal powers of tanglad went the rounds of internet. There’s no harm trying this. A bunch of tanglad is ten centavos. Or you can plant it in your backyard for a steady supply.

————————–
The article is by Allison Kaplan Sommer:

‘At first, Benny Zabidov, an Israeli agriculturalist who grows
 greenhouses full of lush spices on a pastoral farm in Kfar Yedidya in the
 Sharon region, couldn’t understand why so many cancer patients from around
 the country were showing up on his doorstep asking for fresh lemon
 grass.

‘It turned out that their doctors had sent them.

‘’They had been told to drink eight glasses of hot water with fresh
 lemongrass steeped in it on the days that they went for their radiation
 and chemotherapy treatments,’ Zabidov told ISRAEL21c. ‘And this is the
 place you go to in Israel for fresh lemon grass.’

‘It all began when researchers at Ben Gurion University of the Negev
 discovered last year that the lemon aroma in herbs like lemon grass kills
 cancer cells in vitro, while leaving healthy cells unharmed.

‘The research team was led by Dr. Rivka Ofir and Prof. Yakov Weinstein,
 incumbent of the Albert Katz Chair in Cell-Differentiatio n and
 Malignant Diseases, from the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at
 BGU.

‘Citral is the key component that gives the lemony aroma and taste in
 several herbal plants such as lemon grass (Cymbopogon citratus), Melissa
 (Melissa officinalis) and verbena (Verbena officinalis. )

‘According to Ofir, the study found that citral causes cancer cells to
 ’commit suicide: using apoptosis, a mechanism called programmed cell
 death.

‘A drink with as little as one gram of lemon grass contains enough
 citral toprompt the cancer cells to commit suicide in the test tube.

‘The BGU investigators checked the influence of the citral on cancerous
 cells by adding them to both cancerous cells and normal cells that
 were grown in a petri dish. The quantity added in the concentrate was
 equivalent to the amount contained in a cup of regular tea using one gram
 of lemon herbs in hot water. While the citral killed the cancerous
 cells, the normal cells remained unharmed.

‘The findings were published in the scientific journal Planta Medica,
 which highlights research on alternative and herbal remedies. Shortly
 afterwards, the discovery was featured in the popular Israeli press.

‘Why does it work? Nobody knows for certain, but the BGU scientists
 have a theory.

‘’In each cell in our body, there is a genetic program which causes
 programmed cell death. When something goes wrong, the cells divide with no
 control and become cancer cells. In normal cells, when the cell
 discovers that the control system is not operating correctly - for example,
 when it recognizes that a cell contains faulty genetic material
 following cell division it triggers cell death,’ explains Weinstein. ‘This
 research may explain the medical benefit of these herbs.’

‘The success of their research led them to the conclusion that herbs
 containing citral may be consumed as a preventative measure against
 certain cancerous cells.

‘As they learned of the BGU findings in the press, many physicians in
 Israel began to believe that while the research certainly needed to be
 explored further, in the meantime it would be advisable for their
 patients, who were looking for any possible tool to fight their condition, to
 try to harness the cancer-destroying properties of citral.

‘That’s why Zabidov’s farm - the only major grower of fresh lemon grass
 in Israel - has become a pilgrimage destination for these patients.
 Luckily, they found themselves in sympathetic hands. Zabidov greets
 visitors with a large kettle of aromatic lemon grass tea, a plate of
 cookies, and a supportive attitude.

‘’My father died of cancer, and my wife’s sister died young because of
 cancer,’ said Zabidov. ‘So I understand what they are dealing with.
And I may not know anything about medicine, but I’m a good listener.
And so they tell me about their expensive painful treatments and what
 they’ve been through. I would never tell them to stop being treated, but
 it’s great that they are exploring alternatives and drinking the lemon
 grass tea as well.’

‘Zabidov knew from a young age that agriculture was his calling. At age
 14, he enrolled in the Kfar Hayarok Agricultural high school.
After his army service, he joined an idealistic group which headed
 south, in the Arava desert region, to found a new moshav (agricultural
settlement) called Tsofar.

‘’We were very successful; we raised fruits and vegetables, and,’ he
 notes with a smile, ‘We raised some very nice children.’

‘On a trip to Europe in the mid-80s, he began to become interested in
 herbs.

Israel , at the time, was nothing like the trend-conscious
 cuisine-oriented country it is today, and the only spices being grown commercially
 were basics like parsley, dill, and coriander.

‘Wandering in the Paris market, looking at the variety of herbs and
 spices, Zabidov realized that there was a great export potential in this
 niche. He brought samples back home with him, ‘which was technically
 illegal,’ he says with a guilty smile, to see how they would grow in his
 desert greenhouses.

Soon, he was growing basil, oregano, tarragon, chives, sage, marjoram
 and melissa, and mint just to name a few.

‘His business began to outgrow his desert facilities, and so he decided
 to move north, settling in the moshav of Kfar Yedidya, an hour and a
 half north of Tel Aviv. He is now selling ’several hundred kilos’ of
 lemon grass per week, and has signed with a distributor to package and put
 it in health food stores.

‘Zabidov has taken it upon himself to learn more about the properties
 of citral, and help his customers learn more, and has invited medical
 experts to his farm to give lectures about how the citral works and why.

‘He also felt a responsibility to know what to tell his customers about
 its see. ‘When I realized what was happening, I picked up the phone
 and called Dr. Weinstein at Ben-Gurion University , because these people
 were asking me exactly the best way to consume the citral. He said to
 put the loose grass in hot water, and drink about eight glasses each
 day.’

‘Zabidov is pleased by the findings, not simply because it means
 business for his farm, but because it might influence his own health.
‘Even before the news of its benefits were demonstrated, he and his
 family had been drinking lemon grass in hot water for years, ‘just because
 it tastes good.'’

The month of LOVE

February is known to many as the month of LOVE.  I bet many are filled with anticipation as the red day is drawing near especially those who have partners to celebrate the ocassion with. But it’s not only for lovers, it is also time to acknowledge the love our friends share.

I’d like to start this month of love with another inspirational quote sent to me by a friend:

Whenever you share the goodness in your heart,

you always end up winning,

because life is an echo.

It gives back what you give…

maybe even more.

Today…

Another inspirational sms from my phone:

Walk with purpose but with calmness;

Speak with passion but with peace;

Act with energy but with serenity.

The pink ribbon

The pink ribbon is the symbol of breast cancer awareness created by Carol Sutton.  Being a survivor of breast cancer, I am proud to show off this ribbon to everyone.  I also hope that women out there would be vigilant in fighting against breast cancer.

Welcome 2008!!!

Prayer for the New Year

O God of new beginnings and wonderful surprises, thank you for the gift of a new year.  May it be a time of grace for me, a time to grow in faith and love, a time to renew my commitment to following Your Son, Jesus.  May it be a year of blessing for me, a time to cherish my family and friends, a time to renew my efforts at work, a time to embrace my faith more fully.  Walk with me, please, in every day and every hour of this new year, that the light of Christ might shine through me, in spite of my weaknesses and failings.  Above all, may I remember this year that I am a pilgrim on the sacred path to You.   

Amen

That moment

Every day, God gives us the sun – and also one moment in which we have the ability to change everything that makes us unhappy.  Every day, we try to pretend that we haven’t perceived that moment, that it doesn’t exist – that today is the same as yesterday and will be the same as tomorrow.  But if people really pay attention to their everyday lives, they will discover that magic moment.  It may arrive in the instant when we are doing something mundane, like putting our front-door key in the lock; it may lie hidden in the quiet that follows the lunch hour or in the thousand and one things that all seem the same to us. But that moment exists – a moment when all the power of the stars becomes a part of us and enables us to perform miracles.

- Paulo Coelho,
  By the River Piedra I sat down and wept

A quote by Goethe

Treat a man as he is and he will become as he is. 

Treat a man as he can and should be and he will become as he can and should be.

- Goethe

SMS in my phone

Prayer teaches us to wait;

it clears out our vision;

it calms our heart;

and it activates faith.

Grow like the sunrise and be humble like the sunset.

How you can be happy part 2

Here's the remaining part of the Eight Positive Attitudes That Can Transform Your Life! 

6. I’ve got to let the faith flow free through me. Learn how to know God better and overcome doubt.  Faith makes love a possibility.  Love makes miracles happen.

7. I’m going to be a bridge builder.  Learn how to make peace with yourself before becoming a peacemaker for others – and you’ll discover the opposite of love is not hate, but fear.

8. I can choose to be happy!  - Anyway, learn how to remain positive and pardon those who persecute you, even when all else fails.

Related Post:  How you can be happy part 1

How you can be happy

From the book The Be (Happy) Attitudes by Robert Schuller,

Eight Positive Attitudes That Can Transform Your Life!

1. I need help – I can’t do it alone. Learn two miracle-working statements: “I need help” and “I’m sorry”.

2. I’m really hurting – but I am going to bounce back.  Learn that when bad things happen to good people, they become better people.

3. I’m going to remain cool, calm and corrected.

4. I really want to do the right thing.  Learn how to adopt “Go for it” attitude toward your life and dreams.

5. I’m going to treat others the way I want them to treat me.  Learn how to heal your hidden wounds and allow them to turn you into a better person.

The remaining 3 positive attitudes will be posted next time!

:)

… joy…

Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile,

but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.

       - Thich Nhat Hanh

Soaring with high spirit

Welcome to my blog!  This is dedicated to everyone who wish to have a joyful, peaceful and abundant life, the kind of life that will lift your spirit high!   Please visit me again!