At least once in your life you may experience a bad break or a traumatic experience. It could be a cancer diagnosis, the death of a loved one, a marriage gone sour, or loss of a job or business. Setbacks and stumbling blocks are facts of life.

I can say that many of our daily stresses are actually incredibly simple, incredibly avoidable imaginary stories that we've attached our happiness to. So yes, you still have to fulfill all your daily responsibilities, but while you do, remember that THESE silly stresses are only figments of your imagination...

As the disease ran its course, her final stages of life left her a shadow of the high quality person she truly was. Though her brain cells had been ravaged by the sickness, she never ceased to make it clear how much she loved me.

These are the tidbits of wisdom I've learned from women before me, including my incredible mother who saved my life during and after cancer, and many other teachers, mentors, and friends I've had the privilege of knowing.