Personal Journeys: Sandra Beardsley

Teatime
Teatime

Personally, I think that one of the most appealing aspects of the internet has been its ability to allow people everywhere to share their stories.

Stories of inspiration, hope, challenges, joys, hobbies, interests, and more.

I’m somewhat saddened to watch the internet morph into a corporate salesplace, as it slowly loses the human touch that made the early internet a pioneering space filled with real stories about real people.

I hate to be the one to tell you, but Facebook really isn’t the center of the universe and you really don’t have 10,000 “friends” this week.

So, as I have the time to do it, I’m going to share with you some of the “other internet.” The Old School Internet that was composed of people with a burning desire to communicate something of importance to their fellow human beings (not just that they “like” Britney).

We’ll start here:

Here’s the story of Sandy Beardsley, who chose to share her journey as she fought to overcome the effects of a brain tumor. Sandy died in 2006, but her husband, Dan, has left her website in place to help inspire and help others. As she said in the first chapter of her site, “I hope that my words can in some way help anyone that is facing such a challenge. You are not alone.”

Thank you, Dan and Sandy, for sharing your story and helping others find their way through what can be a very confusing and scary process.

Here are more of Sandy’s words, from the genesis of her site in the Summer of 1999:

This is an ongoing written account of my journey through living with a brain tumor. I have kept a journal and continue to write about my experience. At first I kept the journal to express my emotions in a positive way. I began to think I might share these words with others when my journey was finished. Now I realize that that day may never come. Life is a journey and the process is what’s important, not the ending. My husband came up with the idea to share my words on a website.

Please visit the site here and experience for yourself Sandy’s wonderful, giving spirit, filled with strength and hope. And remember this: Life is what’s happening NOW, today. Make the most of it while you have it!

A Time To Live, A Time To Die

Stewart Selman
Stewart Selman
One of the most touching stories I’ve read is one that’s stuck with me for several years: the story of Stewart Selman.

Selman was a regular guy, living life as we all do, expecting it to just keep unfolding as it always had.

Then, came a diagnosis: brain cancer. A terminal diagnosis.

Stewart made an unusual choice: he decided to create an audio diary for his family, memorializing his last days and reminiscing about their lives together. You can read more about this and listen to parts of Selman’s diary here.

Embrace life! As a poet (Robert Herrick) once said, “Gather ye rosebuds while ye may.”