With my creative juices flowing, the words “less is more” came to me as I began writing this blog. Maybe those words are associated with my vacillating mental thoughts over the last week between that I need to write a blog before the end of February versus that I should just write blogs when I feel so inspired. Maybe those words are about quality over quantity. Maybe those words are related to the aggressive nature of health care treatments in the United States, as explained in Lynn Payer’s book Medicine & Culture.

My life isn’t exactly reflecting less is more. My creativity has been outputting at high levels over the last two months. I wrote an article for Alternative Medicine magazine about my experience in Cologne. Over the last week, I worked for clients in the U.S., applied for a media fellowship in health, and pitched a few more magazine articles to new publications.

I am extremely grateful for the amount of energy that I’ve had over the last several months. I feel more energetic than I have in years. Is this from the Cologne treatments? Possibly. Hopefully. Could my increased energy levels stem from the passage of time, and now three and a half years of distance from my Epstein Barr virus diagnosis in July 2003 that resulted in a heavy burden of ongoing fatigue? Perhaps. Whatever the cause, I’ll take it!

Through my blogs, website, and referrals, I have received hundreds of inquires over the last eight months from people around the world about cancer. Prior to my blogs, I have been an information broker for many years to those affected by cancer seeking resources for health and healing. I have recently added a section to my Healing Focus website about my personalized research and advocacy services for people affected by cancer. I am available to consult with cancer patients and their loved ones, discuss treatment options, and think through next steps. I do not claim to have answers, or offer guarantees based on information I share. However, I can help people find resources, understand options, and make educated decisions. For more information, check out One-on-One Advocacy.

And yes, I am still in Cologne, Germany, a city that hosts an annual weeklong event called Karneval every February. I decided to skip town for the drunken festivities and instead went up to Sweden to visit my loving friends Mikael and Noel, their gorgeous children, and Mikael’s statuesque brother Pierre. I also met Mikael and Pierre’s kind mother and sister, Annie. I had an amazing time! Pierre was my guide around Stockholm, a gorgeous city built on 14 islands with the most invigorating air in the world. I toured around Sigtuna, the town where they all live outside of Stockholm. Sigtuna is a former Viking stronghold and center of trade due to its location on the sea, and place in the world with the most Runes, an ancient alphabet also with spiritual associations. And we visited a charming university town called Uppsala, which is one of Sweden’s oldest cities and flourished as early as the 6th century.

Mikael and Pierre are opening up a raw foods store called Herr Spiridons Allehanda AB the middle of March at S:t Eriksgatan 88 in Vasastaden, Stockholm! Their long-term goal is to lead the raw foods movement within Europe, and use environmentally sustainable products and packaging along the way. Pierre will run the business, and Mikael will be in charge of food. Mikael, who has worked as head chef at top-rated restaurants throughout Europe, as well as Roxanne’s and Lydia's Lovin' Foods in California, is an absolute genius in the kitchen. I had the divine privilege of eating some of Mikael’s food during my visit!

Of interest to me, Sweden is a highly civilized country of 8 million that provides health care to all of its citizens, as well as education. Unlike the U.S., Sweden isn’t a country of extremes with some very poor people and some very rich people. Even with high taxes, the average quality of life in Sweden is very good. Sweden does not engage in war, but provides peacekeeping operations in areas of conflict around the world. Sweden’s social system is an example of what is possible when a government doesn’t spend billions of dollars on wars in other countries. Aren’t health care and education hallmarks of true democracies?

After planning my trip to Sweden, I found out that two old friends from Washington, DC, Eric and Jonathan, were arriving in Berlin for business the day I was scheduled to fly from Stockholm to Cologne. I was able to change my flight and meet up with Eric and Jonathan for a few days in Berlin. I really enjoyed my time with my handsome boys! Berlin is also an amazing city with stunning architecture, as well as a complex, and almost unfathomable history for someone who grew up in the U.S.

Life changes moment to moment. Last Saturday evening, I learned that my dear friend Linda that I met through the Medical Center of Cologne died last Friday of lung cancer at her home in Boulder, Colorado. A sassy, intelligent, and spirited woman, I will always remember Linda fondly. Some people enter our lives for a short time and leave a lasting impression. Linda is one of those souls.

In the midst of my sadness for Linda’s death, I have been working virtually non-stop from early morning into late in the evening. It has been my way of dealing. Running from my pain associated with Linda’s passing. Suffocating my anger for the 1,500 people dying of cancer each day, and the 560,000 people dying of cancer each year. And then the feelings unexpectedly surface— at the gym on the treadmill, as I’m eating my lunch watching CNN International, and when I look out my apartment windows into the vast sky. Beyond my tears, in moments of grace, I feel held by life. By this I mean the love I give and receive, the serenity of nature, and the pulsing interconnectedness of all beings. There is some comfort that Linda, and the many other friends I’ve had the privilege of knowing over the years that have died of cancer, are a part of the ubiquitous web of life. It is my personal belief that the soul never dies. And love never ends.