Cancer brings with it a whole raft of negatives that can engulf us.
But even in the thick of all the challenges, there is one technique I find helps me regain perspective and reclaim my sanity and that’s panning for gold.
Within any situation I have found myself in, I have always looked for the hidden treasure.
Now, this doesn’t always present itself to you on a plate.
To find it, you have to shake, gyrate and tilt the pan of life and that requires a lot of patience and persistence.
But if you can weather the storm you are in and keep at it, you may be surprised at what you find.
For example, during the worst sessions of chemo I experienced, I really went through it. I was on the ward for 10 hours at a time and quite honestly, I hated it and felt the whole world was against me. I felt angry.
But there was gold there. I was surrounded by kindness, compassion, empathy, and respect. I was surrounded by smiles and encouragement. I was surrounded by quality care.
You might think those things would be obvious but I didn’t see them at first because the poison dragged me down and stripped me of my awareness and emotional resilience.
I kept shaking, gyrating and tilting the pan. There was more gold. I looked out of the window and the sun was shining. My phone pinged and I had messages of support. A friend visited to say hello. Another patient spurred me on.
There were particles of positivity in the pan, some of them priceless. I realised that there were some pretty big nuggets of gold in the human heart. There’s gold in them thar hills and there’s gold in them wards too!
I truly believe that every problem or challenge hides some gold and it is possible to find value in situations that seem insurmountable and hopeless. To get at it means getting your hands dirty.
Is there gold to be found in the cancer experience? Yes, it’s there, it’s definitely there. Even facing incurable cancer, I’ve actually found pots of the stuff and there is always so much to be grateful for that others could only dream of.
Top tip 1 : Don’t give up if you don’t find gold right away, gold is unevenly spread.
Top tip 2: Sweep the Fool’s Gold aside.
Things really do pan out in the end.