As I write this, I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of my first grandchild. My daughter (and co-publisher) Alina is expected to go into labor before we even meet the printer’s deadline for this issue! She and I have been on quite a journey this past year, since she was diagnosed with breast cancer and quickly had a lumpectomy last October in Vail, Colorado where she had been living for 15 years. 

Following surgery, as her medical team began discussing treatment options, Alina developed a strong desire to pursue alternative treatments in her hometown of Naples. It was a scary and confusing time for both of us, as cancer and other health challenges can often be. But step by step, we were led to the most incredible healers and therapies right here in Southwest Florida. 

We are so grateful for the gifts each of them brought to us. Every diagnosis is different and a therapy that might work for one kind of cancer might not work for another, so often it’s a matter of following the messages from our inner healer. The greatest advice came from an oncologist that said, “The best treatment is the one you believe in!” 

Alina intuitively felt empowered to heal herself. She got much stricter with her diet with the help of a functional medicine practitioner that specializes in nutrition and had successfully treated her own breast cancer. Alina removed the things in her life that didn’t contribute to her health and added things that supported her recovery, including lots of juicing; specific supplements; overnight treatments with the Energy Enhancement System (EES), Rife, SCIO and other frequency systems; parasite cleanses and colonics; and other modalities from an eclectic team of specialists. 

Follow-up tests continue to indicate that she is cancer-free, and instead of being in menopause from estrogen blockers, she is having her first baby! Did I mention she found the love of her life just before discovering she had cancer? What a gift Charley has been on her journey, and he is thrilled to be welcoming their first child any day now. 

I have a lot to be grateful for this Thanksgiving, including the arrival of my first granddaughter, a wonderful co-publishing partnership with Alina and, perhaps most significantly, the wonderful and loving team of healers that supported my daughter in her amazing transformation.

No matter what challenges you’ve been experiencing, whether recovering from recent hurricanes, confronting your own health challenges or accepting the election results, moving through these difficulties and entering the holiday season with gratitude can make all the difference. On page 33, Marlaina Donato writes, “Feeling gratitude for bounty that has not yet arrived, and for all that is on its way to us in its rightful season, provides us with an opportunity to see the light beyond the shadow.”

This holiday season, may you find and create big and small blessings daily to nurture yourself and share with others on your path. Rather than dwelling on what we don’t have, may we focus on all of our gifts and qualities we can enjoy with loved ones. 

In deep gratitude,

Sharon Bruckman