By Gloria, Gilda’s Club Member
At the age of 30, I was hit like a ton of bricks when I went in for my annual physical and was told she found a lump in my left breast. After many tests, I was given the diagnosis of stage 3 breast cancer and it had spread to my lymph nodes. The next year and a half was spent juggling being a single mom to a 5 year old, working full time alongside chemo treatments, radiation, and 2 surgeries.
As if that wasn’t enough, a month after my diagnosis, my grandmother and my best friend was diagnosed with stage 4 lung and kidney cancer. She passed away the week after my first surgery. Having cancer yourself is enough to break someone, but to also lose a family member to it was devastating.
After not being able to find a therapist due to long waitlists, and the cancer therapists not seeing me due to previous mental health history, I was left feeling completely broken and alone. I finally reached out to Gilda’s Club and joined the Young Adults group on Thursdays.
During my surgeries, I got deep back into my art as a way to deal with the heavy emotions. Two weeks after I finished my pieces, I saw that there was going to be a community art show and decided to finally take a leap and put myself out there. After all, I had already beat cancer, what was the worst that could happen? Plus, I took it as a sign from my grandmother who was the one to get me into art.
I sat in the parking lot before the opening night thinking that no one would like any of them. I never thought of my art as being good enough. I finally got the courage to walk in the room where I was greeted by numerous people who were waiting to meet the artist of the beautiful piece. That was one of the best nights of my life. I got asked for business cards and even sold some art. If it weren’t for Gilda’s Club having these opportunities, I’m not sure I would have ever gotten out there.
My favorite piece from last year is called, Her:Art. It was the first charcoal drawing I had done in years. It depicted my cancer journey. The flowers representing my tumors and the leaves depicting the spread to my lymph nodes. I wanted to express how you can make something beautiful even through the ugly times. This piece of artwork kicked off my idea to recreate and tell other people touched by cancer in a similar fashion. Mixing flowers and leaves to make cancer into something beautiful and therapeutic.
This year my favorite piece is called, Growing Breaths. It is a mixed media painting on wood that I had a lot of fun making. This one I made for my Grandmother. It shows one side that is done in acrylic black, white and grey paint. Representing the dark nitty gritty side of lung cancer. The other side shows flowers and leaves breaking out of newspaper. As if it’s growing off the page. In the same way I used flowers and leaves to represent the tumor and spread in my previous piece. I took it a step farther this time by having them literally coming out of the wood.
I owe so many thank yous to the Gilda’s Club team and volunteers! Being a single mom with a busy schedule means I don’t make every meeting. But they are always there when I need someone to talk to who understands the complex feelings. The people who I have met throughout this journey have touched my life more than I think they are even aware of. Shoutout to the Young Adults group for always giving the best insight and advice.
To anyone afraid to do something out of fear, I dare you to push back against and do it anyways. That night really kicked off my healing journey. Turning something so painful into a beautiful piece of art is a way to focus on the beautiful parts amongst the heavy, dark clouds of life. I hope to inspire others to use art as a therapeutic release the same way that I do.
The 2025 Community Art Show will kick off on May 29th. To learn more about how you can be a part of it, or see Gloria’s art in person, visit www.GildasClubMadison.org/ArtShow
If you would like to see more of Gloria’s art, visit https://www.instagram.com/artful_glow/profilecard/