Do you ever feel the need to focus on something other than breast cancer, or maybe the need to get away, even if it's somewhere imaginary? While going through chemo my lack of energy made a trip to the kitchen feel like a trek to another county, and chemo brain turned reading into an Olympic sport. As a result I spent a lot of time in bed or in front of TV, watching cooking shows and The Young and the Restless, waiting for my energy to return. I soon discovered ways to have mini vacations without going anywhere, destinations that help me find a strong sense of inner peace and let go of things over which I have no control. One of those destinations is the daybed on the porch at the Little House.<PREVIEWEND>

Each week I try and spend time there, talking to God, listening to a meditation or hypnosis CD, or imagining myself atop my favorite Mayan ruin that overlooks the Caribbean. Other times I leaf through magazines, polish my toenails or simply watch the squirrels scamper from limb to limb. Just being there replenishes the Zen part of me breast cancer has pushed aside: the part that helps me squash my obsessive-compulsive worrywart and makes breathing easier.

When the morning breeze stops and the squirrels retreat from the impending heat, I realize my stolen time away is over. Like the squirrels, I find a cooler place to wait until the next time I can visit my healing place. Tell me about your healing place, or how you let go of your worries and fear. If you do not have a healing place, how are you going to find one?