Breast Fest Travel Subsidy

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Rethink Breast Cancer is this awesome Canadian organization that supports young women diagnosed with the disease, and stays very cool and fun while doing it. Okay, I know breast cancer isn’t fun, but this is a fantastic organization – they help in big ways.

ANYHOW. This coming November is the Breast Fest Film Festival in Toronto. Rethink has asked us to spread the word about their travel subsidies for new ‘young’ breast cancer survivors (if you don’t like that word, feel free to mentally replace with whatever adjective you choose). This is a really fantastic festival – it’s not a downer whatsoever. Zsolt and I went last year and had a wonderful time; it’s a great chance to connect with other women impacted by this crap called breast cancer, and find fun, strength and meaning from the films and discussions.

And guess what? They have a travel subsidy covered by Rethink and a portion by Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation. Here’s the guidelines for who qualifies for free transportation, accommodation and entrance to the festival:

“To be eligible you must be between the ages of 20-45 and have received a breast cancer diagnosis within the last 2 years. You must have never attended Breast Fest or received a subsidy from the CBCF. In addition, you agree to share your contact information with the CBCF.”

My two year window has thankfully passed (wooohooo!), but if you’re reading this and think you’re at a place where you’d like to connect with other young women and this amazing organization, don’t hesitate to get in touch with them and apply for the subsidy. The deadline is September 14th – so move fast! Believe me, they do things with class and style. It’s not a weekend to wallow in the misery of cancer, it’s about celebrating life and being open about this problem.

Here’s the link. http://www.breastfestfilmfest.com/index.shtm Happy viewing!

 

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The tragedy and the miracle

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Two weeks ago around this time Zsolt and I were in New York visiting the September 11th memorial site. It’s an open-space with construction happening all around and tourists & New Yorkers dispersed between the two fountains where the towers once stood. It’s surreal in a way; I remember my first year of university and getting ready to go to class when I heard something on the radio about a plane crashing into a building in New York City. It didn’t sound right, it had to be a bad joke. I left the house. Rode the bus. Went to class. Sat in class. Found out it was real. Came home. Watched what happened over and over in replay.

Horrible. It’s hard to be reminded that life serves tragedies just as equally as it serves miracles.

The fountains that pour down in the memorial park evoke sadness. There’s such a sense of sadness. With the names of those who died rimming the fountain, the water slides away and tumbles downwards into the black pool, then again it falls into the ground, out of sight. It’s about falling . . . falling and remembering, falling and weeping . . . it’s about the lives that were pulled down into we-don’t-know-where. I’ve never seen a memorial that was so effective in evoking a remembrance of loss. Yet at the same time it’s beautiful to watch the water fall, to feel the spray lifted by the wind, to trace your fingers over the names.

I’m sorry for what happened on September 11th. I’m sorry for the people in Syria who are getting massacred. I’m sorry for people who are torn from their families. I’m sorry for people who get sick before they’re ready. I’m really just sorry for all of these hardships that can make life seem unbearable.

And I’m thankful for the compassion people can show to one another; thankful for their courage to be resilient against a tyrant; thankful for the bonds we form with total strangers; thankful for a smile given on the street; thankful for the moment that is peaceful, even if the world feels like it’s crumbling.

Anyhow. I meant to write about what’s been going on since we’ve gotten back from Europe . . . but then I look at the calendar and it’s September 11th, and this is a day that cannot be forgotten. I’m sure there are many days that cannot be forgotten for many people – both tragedies and miracles alike.

Today I’m thinking about those who know what it is to be helpless, and I’m hoping for as many as possible, they can find some peace despite the chaos.

 

Faces and a Cause: Sept. 14th in Ottawa, 7.30 – 10.00pm

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You know what I love to do? Meet over a cup of tea. Meet friends, family, clients, colleagues . . . meet and drink a big steaming cup of tea. So can you guess what I just did? 🙂 

This morning at the local Starbucks here in the west end of Ottawa, I was lucky enough to meet, chat and drink tea (though I think she had a latte; for sure caramel was involved) with photographer Lou Truss. Lou is a professional photographer who, along with travelling the world and raising a family, has captured a wide range of issues and conversations through her lens. She snaps documentary pics, weddings, campaigns, and causes.

Photo by Lou Truss, featuring Katie Evans

Anyhow, a little while ago there was some buzz in the ‘young women who’ve had breast cancer and live in Ottawa’ community, (You might think that sounds ridiculous, but we’re here and there are far too many of us.) where Katie of Lovely Katie Lumps was telling us about this photography project that was going to raise awareness about breast cancer in young women.  And it got me wondering, ‘who is this woman who wants to show our story and raise awareness – and why should we pay attention to her exhibit amongst the plethora of cancer-awareness raising activities?’ Which sounds harsh, but I think is also fair to ask.

I wasn’t sceptical about her intentions being genuine, but part of me was nevertheless uncertain in general. I put off joining the project – getting distracted by job stuff and travel stuff and other work stuff. Eventually the exhibit slipped my mind, until about a month ago when the first photographs were released on Facebook and Twitter.

TRUE: I know several of the ladies in these pictures. So yeah, I’m a little biased in my approval. But also  TRUE is that in seeing the photographs released to the public to build attention for the exhibit, I was fixated by their beauty, by their approach, by how these women (my peers in the Y.W.W.H.B.C.A.L.I.O community*) were choosing to represent their stories of dealing with cancer.

Lou doesn’t bother writing long captions and explanations. The photographs – stark in their black and whites – tell their own stories. These women whom I’ve known, talked to, found support from, suddenly seemed different. Even within the cancer community we so often wear our ‘brave’ faces for one another, you can forget that each person’s experience is unique. . . and when we’re asked to represent those stories, those unique experiences manifest very differently depending on the person.

Therefore, impressed by the sneak peek, I clicked the Facebook icon that said “attending” to the event.

And then I received an email from Lou – inviting me to meet for tea (What? Did she know my weakness for coffee houses?) and to model for this exhibit. So today, just a couple hours ago, we met and chatted for a while, swapping stories about cancer, about England, about health care, about immigration, etc.

Lou lost her father to cancer. It was very, very quick. She’s had friends diagnosed with cancer  too– she has friends right now (yeah, that’s plural) who are going through chemotherapy. Cancer, once arriving on the scene, has reappeared far too frequently in her life. “We’re fragile,” she said to me at some point half-way through our drinks. But of course, when we’re younger we don’t realize that do we? Many young women don’t check their breasts routinely – most people don’t expect to get sick.

And nor should they. I’m not suggesting we live in fear. But to have an awareness that translates into a practical ‘good health’ routine, a proactive approach toward your body – that can save your life. It sure as heck saved mine.

So yes, raising awareness is a very good thing. And yes, not draping the stories in ribbons or colours or copywriting is a very good choice. Let each person tell their own journey – and Lou will capture their fragility and their strength through her camera.

Actually, it sounds pretty great; with the best thing being how genuinely she wants to make a difference.  This Saturday my own story gets captured by Lou’s camera, and then there’s the exhibit on September 14th right here in Ottawa. If you’re in the area, please come by and check it out – it’s well worth seeing and meeting the women behind the images. It’ll be a Friday night with impact.

See you there!

Catherine

Event Details:

Friday, September 14th, 2012 from 7:30-10pm at Ottawa Studio Works which is 160 Preston St. – between Gladstone and Somerset. Funds will be raised for “Young Adult Cancer Canada.” It’s FREE to get in, though donations to YACC are happily accepted. Also!! The Photographs will be for sale in raising funds.

*P.S. I’m just joking. We do NOT call ourselves by that name, or any name at all.