|Articles|January 24, 2023

A Small, Inspiring Bushy-Tailed Visitor as a Distraction From Cancer

When my wife was going through cancer treatments, she sometimes would color my artwork as a distraction. Here’s an activity I made for other survivors, now that it’s the year of the rabbit.

Since art can be such good therapy for those struggling with a cancer diagnosis, I’m going to be creating a number of coloring pages for the readers and contributors here at CURE®. I know my late wife found coloring the pages I often created for her to be a welcome distraction when she was undergoing treatment for BRCA2-associated breast cancer.

Again, I’m not an art therapist. I’m just a career freelance illustrator sharing my creative gifts to help others struggling with this dreadful disease.

My first activity features a rabbit because, well, according to the Chinese calendar, 2023 is the year of the rabbit. And because there was a rabbit that used to hang out in our backyard that became a sort of mascot for my wife as she struggled with her triple-negative breast cancer diagnosis and treatments.

Living close to a desert preserve here in Phoenix, the wild critters of the area often make their way into the backyard. While my wife was undergoing chemotherapy, one particular bushy-tailed animal visited the yard every day and rested in the safety and shade of the brittlebush. It was a cottontail rabbit with a rumpled ear that a hole in it. My wife named the bunny Scrappy.

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