Old Art, New Book

Always nice to see artwork I created years ago still being used.

Originally inspired by my late wife's need for images for her classroom and parent newsletters and handouts, my portfolio of education clip art images grew and evolved over several years. Eventually the collection and hundreds of additional pieces* were featured as royalty-free images the Discovery (Channel) Education Clip Art Gallery for nearly twenty years.

Some of the artwork is now being used in the book, “50 Ways to Cultivate Lifelong Readers in Your K-4 Classroom.” The book was written for teachers by Paige Zamarripa, an elementary school teacher who has spent years teaching young readers to love reading for pleasure. Included in this book you will also find ideas for both new and master teachers that will enhance your reading and writing workshops.

It’s new and available now at Amazon.
https://www.amazon.com/Ways-Cultivate-Lifelong-Readers-Classroom/dp/B0BV4BS8BX

 

 (*By the way, you can still find many of those same images at EducatorClips.com)

Love, Brains, Courage and Family Cancer History

If there's a family history of cancer someone has to care enough to become educated enough about any hereditary cancer risks and then have the courage to speak up and share that knowledge with the family. Sounds simple, but it’s not. In fact, talking about cancer, and specifically about a history of cancer in the family, can be so difficult for some people.

Talking openly about health history with your family is important. Documenting that information, especially if there is a family history of cancer, can be life-saving.

As part of my hereditary cancer awareness and prevention advocacy, I have a free Family Health/Cancer History Pedigree PDF that you can download by clicking on the link or the image above. I created it so you can get the conversation started with your family.

Discussing cancer, while not always easy, will not kill you or your relatives. However, to be bluntly honest, ignoring a cancer risk to you or a loved one can. 

You can find more hereditary cancer information created by me at: Genetionary.org.

World Cancer Day and the Butterfly Effect

 Since the readers at CURE are already acutely aware of cancer, I created another coloring page to hopefully distract them from the fact that World Cancer Day was coming up. 

"Butterflies are exquisite creatures that help pollenate flowers and other plants. So, I would like to take the theory in another direction today: one of hope for the cancer community. The thought of how just one small act by a cancer researcher, a doctor, a nurse, an advocate, a caring family member or maybe even a cancer patient might ultimately lead to a positive event of significant life-saving importance – maybe even a cure."

Please share the article and art. And flap your wings.

https://www.curetoday.com/view/cancer-and-the-butterfly-effect

New Art for the New Year

 

Sometimes, between my work for the cancer community (and my grief work), I still get assignments to do other artwork. Some of this was actually done earlier for another edition. This is from the January 2023 issue of ASK magazine for kids.

A Holiday Offering

Losing my wife to a hereditary cancer that was very preventable was unbearably heartbreaking. And the heartache is never more keenly felt by my daughter and me than during the holidays.

My wife is no longer alive to celebrate the holidays because life-saving genetic sequencing information was not shared with numerous at-risk family members. So, in memory of my wife, I have become a very determined hereditary cancer awareness and prevention advocate in the hope that I might save a life or two and prevent a hell of a lot of suffering and sorrow.

As part of my love and advocacy, I create content for Cure Today, a publisher of cancer care resources. For the holidays I wrote a story that I hope you will take a moment to read. 

And accompanying my story is a holiday art activity with a message about cancer that I hope you’ll share...

https://www.curetoday.com/view/a-holiday-offering-for-those-affected-by-cancer  

 

CURE's Facebook post:

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=593898379409225&set=a.404816141650784

 

Talking to your Family about Hereditary Cancer

Cancer Education & Kindness

It's so important to share information if there is a family history of cancer. With my late wife, I witnessed how not sharing cancer risk knowledge can lead to needless suffering and heartache. What should of been a simple act of love and kindness didn't happen and my wife died because of it.

Please read my article at Cure Today:

https://www.curetoday.com/view/cancer-education-and-kindness

This particular article was inspired by the late children's book author, Amy Krouse Rosenthal, and this Thought Bubble video about kindness. Since it wasn't linked in the article, click on the image below to view it:

And thanks to the Amy Krouse Rosenthal Foundation, a great organization providing funding for ovarian cancer early detection research as well as child literacy, for giving my article a shout-out on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=517614293747786&set=a.343272274515323

 

A Monster and Cancer's Evil

I recently did another drawing activity for CureToday.com, this one on how to draw a fun little monster for Halloween. In the article accompanying it I tried to explain that I was just “trying to give those dealing with cancer a little creative break. I know all too well that there is nothing fun and lighthearted about cancer. It is truly evil you-know-what.”

For those outside the cancer community, let me share some of cancer's evilness. A study by Brigham and Women's Hospital and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology found that cancer has to deactivate immune cell attackers to survive. To do this, cancer cells send out microscopic tentacles that reach inside immune cells and rip out the immune cells' power source, the cells’ mitochondria.

Then there is the ability of cancer stem cells to escape programmed cell death.  And the sinister ability to get past the blood-brain barrier when a lot of other things can't, including many chemotherapy drugs. Pretty evil shit if you ask me.

To be very honest, I really wanted to draw something really evil looking then write something where I unloaded every expletive in the book on cancer and all the heartache and destruction it causes. The hell with my professional, mild-mannered children’s book illustrator reputation. But I knew the readers at Cure Today were already acutely aware of the awfulness of cancer and didn’t want to read another rant by me. (I’ve already have done that enough in my other articles there.)

Take a Break from the Darkness of Cancer and Draw a Halloween Monster