On finding and creating community

Today is Mesothelioma Awareness Day – September 26. Mesothelioma is a rare cancer often linked to asbestos exposure. It can be a particularly devastating diagnosis.

Nine years ago, I was diagnosed with well-differentiated papillary mesothelioma of the peritoneum (it was in my abdominal cavity). A form of mesothelioma so rare, there still isn’t much known about it. I soon learned this particular pathology was unlikely to kill me.

Except.

I needed further imaging. After extensive testing to rule out an additional cancer that could have killed me, I moved forward with learning how to manage this diagnosis.

Which I’m still doing nine years later.

Though I remain in a space of “no evidence of disease,” I’m still making decisions in the midst of medical unknowns. My oncologist calls this “choose your own adventure,” which, on the surface, sounds pretty frustrating, doesn’t it? Except when he said that, I felt seen. Because that’s exactly what it is.

Nine years later, I’m still navigating medical decisions with this underlying uncertainty always present. I’m still navigating lasting pain. And I’m deeply grateful when someone else “gets” it.

I’ve shared pieces of my journey leading up to this diagnosis in my chapter in The Losses We Keep. There’s so much more to share about how this diagnosis fundamentally shifted my life.

Today, though, I want to bring attention to some of the long-term effects of a cancer diagnosis, far beyond life-saving treatments. Because after those treatments is…

Life.

Ask any cancer survivor—or anyone who has survived a life-threatening event.

You don’t simply fit back into your old life.
We can’t go back to before.

What follows is a mixture of so much:

• Grief
• Relief
• Confusion
• Changed relationships
• Loss of many kinds
• Joy
• Gratitude
• Financial impacts
• Isolation
• And beyond.

Mostly, I sum this up as: lasting uncertainty.

Learning to live with that uncertainty is a process.

One of the best things I did for myself following my diagnosis was to find a community of people who understood. I’m forever grateful that I found the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation—not only to get the medical answers I desperately sought but also to find a community of people who truly got it. Patients. Caregivers. Community members who lost a loved one to meso.

Meeting others through cancer is a fast track to deep friendship. You don’t need to go through surface-level niceties. These are some of the deepest, most impactful relationships I’ve known.

Also devastating. As I mentioned above, meso can be a very devastating cancer. I carry many amazing people in my heart. Each of them has had an impact on what I do today.

Yes, there is a lot of grief. And so much gratitude for the opportunity to have these deeply impactful connections.

Through this foundation, I was invited to use my nonprofit skills to help develop a community advisory board of patients, caregivers, and bereaved. I’m forever grateful for this opportunity to use my professional skills in this way.

It’s a piece of what brought about developing my travel agency, Engage! Travel Co., and my personal brand, Travel with Life.

I don’t believe we have to “make something” of our pain or the hard things we’ve been through in life. I find narratives around that can quickly veer into a lane I call grief shaming. Ick.

And yet, I often write about how I lean into “yes, and” in choosing how I respond to life’s challenges. It took me years to figure out how I wanted to respond to my particular diagnosis and to be ready to share my story about meso and miscarriages.

I’ve always wanted to use my skills to put good back into the world. I had no idea these things would stack in this way. For many years, I thought my entrepreneurial dreams were done. Turns out, they were evolving.

Choosing to take my skills and build a travel agency came out of finding community in those early days after my diagnosis. I started to see how my longtime love of travel could fit with serving others. I had deep conversations with friends who had months left to live, who shared their stories with me. And among the stories of family and friends, there was often a common theme—travel.

It’s part of why I decided to put my skills toward building a travel agency and developing services around Travel with Life—personal reset getaways, group meeting/retreat planning, and more community involvement coming soon.

Because we will all face hard seasons in life. And we do have a choice in how we respond. Travel can be one of those things.

When I write about resets and choosing simple joy, it’s because I know how much those things can matter in navigating what life throws at us. Even if it’s still sometimes messy.

Today, I honor the wonderful friends I’ve made through this diagnosis. I remember our shared stories, laughter, and tears. These connections have shaped me in ways I never expected. They’ve also inspired me to think deeply about how we navigate life after the unthinkable.

When I think about “Travel with Life,” it’s not just about physical travel—it’s about the journey we take within ourselves. It’s about finding ways to move forward, even when the path is unclear. It’s about choosing to embrace the messy, beautiful, and unpredictable.

For me, travel has always been a way to reset, to reconnect with myself and others, and to find joy in the midst of uncertainty. It’s why I’ve built Engage! Travel Co. and why I’m so passionate about creating opportunities for others to experience the transformative power of travel.

Through Travel with Life, I hope to create a space where people can find community, connection, and a sense of belonging. Because no matter what we’ve been through, we all deserve moments of joy, discovery, and hope.

So today, on Mesothelioma Awareness Day, I invite you to reflect on your own journey.

• What helps you navigate the hard seasons?
• And how can you create space for connection and community in your life?

If you feel inclined to support the mesothelioma community, I invite you to make a donation here. Your support helps fund research, provide resources, and build the kind of community that has made such a difference in my life.

Thank you for being part of this journey with me. Let’s keep traveling with life—together.

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