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Cultivate and Motivate

Reflections on loss, faith, healing and advocacy, and notes from the road to the book.

Loss Cheryl Shaw Loss Cheryl Shaw

I Gave Up My Breasts So I Could Live

When I received my second breast cancer diagnosis, I wasn’t sure of my options until I met with my oncologist. She said it was aggressive cancer that would soon take my life if I did not start chemotherapy right away. My first diagnosis had been relatively easy. I only had to cut a small chunk of my breast and go through six weeks of radiation before I could have reconstructive surgery five years later. This time the cancer was spreading at a rapid pace.

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Faith Cheryl Shaw Faith Cheryl Shaw

Where Does Your Strength Come From?

I often share with my closest friends that I may knock on their door one day for a place to lay my head for a while, and they have all assured me that the door will remain open. That is the beauty of my life and the blessings that I have received. Although alone physically, my spirit is positive because of the people who are family and extended family. We are in each of our lives for a reason. Somehow we found each other to support each other in this vast universe, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

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Faith Cheryl Shaw Faith Cheryl Shaw

Reflect on the Good

Know that wherever you are under whatever circumstances, there is good. Make it a priority to search for it and keep it at the center of your thoughts and prayers.

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Reflections Cheryl Shaw Reflections Cheryl Shaw

Be A Survivor

Some things happen to us in our life that we will never forget. We will remember the time and the place that we first heard of a tragic incident, and we will not forget what we were doing and our reaction to the news.

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Advocacy Cheryl Shaw Advocacy Cheryl Shaw

Our Health Drives Our Country

Whether it is a deadly virus or chronic disease, our health is a challenge. It has the power to unify us as people or divide us as a nation. Any threat to our health that attempts to control our mobility, finances, and relationships has an immediate and lasting effect on who we are, how we operate, and if we survive.

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Writing the Book Cheryl Shaw Writing the Book Cheryl Shaw

Childhood Memories

If you are anything like me, you have wondered if there was something that I could have done as a child to prevent my cancer diagnosis. Were there decisions that I made or didn’t make that caused me to be diagnosed later? What could I have done differently to make sure that I was not a breast cancer candidate.

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COMING MARCH 2027

Thunder Wrapped in Velvet: A Black Woman’s Memoir of Listening, Loss, and Coming Home