|
your resource for holistic living in |
|
spiritual self terrece crawford: surviving cancer with By Jamie Jacobs Terrece Crawford was in the final days of breast cancer treatment when I met her. She shared her story of survival. Clearly being an artist played a pivotal role in her healing. Her story is one where a life-changing event would shake the very core of her being and catapult her into a greater level of consciousness. She was diagnosed with breast cancer, which triggered another devastating event, the death of her beloved father, a respected doctor, who died of cancer when she was just five years old. Now a mother of two sons, she did not want to leave them in that way. Terrece has loved art and horses all her life and the two have intermingled to provide comfort and therapy during the worst of times. She was introduced to horses two years after her father’s death at the age of seven. Terrified at first, she learned to trust the large animal’s gentle spirit to carry her safely. She now refers to this experience as equine therapy before it had a label, as it helped her heal from the tragic loss of her father. Horses were often the subject of her art. While pursuing her master’s degree at Carthage College, her required art-themed project was entitled, “Beyond the Mirror” where she used many techniques and art styles with self portraiture. This project helped her learn about herself in a profound way. She had extreme difficulty looking at herself in the mirror. Typically, when artists do portraits, they look closely at the surface and contour of their subjects. Terrece’s artwork helped her learn about herself with deeper meaning by showing her that she had subconsciously blamed herself for all the bad things that happened in her lifetime, feeling unable to love herself. The introspection of this and various other art mediums taught her to mourn her losses and work through the painful experiences of her past. Most of all, she learned to love the reflection in the mirror. What she didn’t know was that she was being prepared for a huge challenge. Three months after she received her master’s degree in creative arts in May of 2007, she was diagnosed with cancer. Her sincere prayer was that she could live to be a mother to her sons, Jacob and Charles. Determined to survive, reconnected with her art & newfound ability to love herself, she chronicled each step of her treatment through an art journal. From the diagnosis, to before and after losing her hair, to the sketches of her post surgery body, she processed and dealt with her feelings, accepting each step with the assistance of her art. She felt empowered that even at her worst physical self, even after her female ornamental identity – her hair and breast – were missing or scarred, she could look in the mirror and love herself. Instead of feeling doomed to a certain death, she now felt hope and peace. She could move forward with confidence and be a better self – and share that gift of survival and hope with others. Terrece received care at Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Zion, Ill., which merges traditional western medicine and a holistic mind-body approach. She is grateful to the compassionate professionals who encouraged her art as a creative means of therapy. Foal of Hope Flowers of Hope are growing To me the Foal was therapy Breast cancer I did survive ~ Terrece Crawford We are often re-directed in our path through a life-changing event. The true test of our character is how we emerge on the other side. For brave individuals like Terrece Crawford, who share their stories with others, we gain hope of getting to the other side and understand the abundant gifts that are possible. Terrece’s experience has changed and strengthened her and now she inspires others. Deeply grateful that her prayer was answered and she can be a mom to her sons, her new perspective allows her to appreciate every moment… with the help of art, horses and a prayer. “ See Terrece’s complete journal of art at www.gloriousworks.com” Jamie Jacobs is publisher of
|
© 2010 The Guide to Health, Wellness and Creative Living |
