Things I Wish My Mother Had Said

In her heartwarming new book, Things I Wish my Mother had Said… (or maybe she did), cancer survivor and mother of two, Genie Lee Perron, presents a beautiful compilation of original artwork and motherly advice. Here's an excerpt from the book.

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Mom was diagnosed with cancer in the late eighties. Shortly after, I was married. I suffered two miscarriages within a year. I wanted to be pregnant so badly so that my children would know and remember my dear mother. The thought of losing my mother was my biggest fear and sadness at that time. I feared that my mother would pass away and I would not be able to impart the words of wisdom to my off spring that I was so lucky to have

I was finally blessed with two beautiful daughters. However, the fear and hopelessness regarding my mother’s illness encompassed my every thought and by the year 2000, I had manifested a diagnosis of my own. I was diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia in February of 2000. Four months later, my beloved mother and best friend died. At the time, my daughters were three and four years old.

In the beginning, my prognosis was not good. Treatments available did nothing to reverse my condition, but merely bought time by slowing the progression of disease. I knew I needed to go within to help with my healing. I did lots of meditating, Reiki and other forms of holistic healing in addition to conventional medicine. I was fortunate to start a new, “miracle” drug as it was fast tracked through the FDA. With the help of this drug and through the other holistic methods of healing, I was able to maintain my health and went into remission not long after beginning treatment. I have been in remission for 12 years now.

Along my path to physical healing, I realized that I needed to heal spiritually in order to heal physically.

The beautiful side effect to all my meditation and inner work over the years is the discovery that I can still access my mother’s wisdom. When I calm myself through meditation or yoga, I can feel my mother’s presence as I interact with my children. When I paint or draw, she is right there with me, sharing her joy and artistic talent. I have felt her words flow through me and I know she is rejoicing as she watches, from spirit, the beautiful young women I am raising.

And so, this book, a compilation of original artwork and thoughts, is a tribute to my mother, to her words of wisdom, her kindness, her gentle ways and her pure love of her family. My hope is that this book will somehow preserve my interpretation of her wisdom and that of all the great teachers before her for my children. The most important lesson I learned from my mother is that life is good. It’s not always fair and sometimes there are bumps in the road, but it IS good!!!

To learn more, visit www.genieleeperron.com