Beauty Can Help

Since I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer a little over two months ago, my life has undergone tremendous change.  As you can imagine, a lot of it has been both physically and emotionally painful to endure, but thankfully this has been the balanced out by many acts of kindness from people.  Boundless kindness, from near and far, from people I barely know to people I know well, from those in my past and those in my present.  It has been literally heart warming and caused my spirits to rise well above what my medical condition would really warrant.
One very unexpected part of joy for me that happens almost every day is that I get a message that includes one or more beautiful pieces of art.  They come from someone who shares my love of texture and color and shadow in art, and the sheer grace that can be imparted with the beauty of form.  It is not that I couldn't surround myself with art books that I have bought at the various exhibits I have gone to since childhood.  I could.  But there is something very special about having someone chose for me.  I have loved it more than I can say and much more than I would ever have imagined.  One of the many things that I have learned in the short time that I have spent with serious illness is that I have a lot to learn about being a comfort to others, and I hope that this one insight, that beauty can help, is one that I get to share in the future with those in need.