I had never painted nor drawn anything. Diagnosed with stage IV prostate cancer at age 71 some friends brought me canvas and acrylics. In what seems a miracle to me I have now painted over 100 abstract paintings that deal with my cancer&#39;s affects on my life. Themes of fear, confusion, joy, love just flow from my soul. In this painting done about six months after I had had prostatectomy, chemotherapy and radiation I reflect on the state of confusion in my heart. You&#39;ll be happy to know if you look at my other work that while still not out of the woods I have been able to find enormous joy in doing and expressing many other positive feelings about my recovery.

According to Chinese astrology, I was born in the year of the tiger; I created this glass and tile mosaic as a personal Feng Shui piece. The color red is believed to have a protective function and other color choices were influenced by the date and time of my birth. As a two-time cancer survivor, I welcome the idea of protection! My tiger travels a path through the jungle, over stones large and small, and who knows what he will encounter along the way? Butterflies fly in the jumbled leaf canopy overhead. The upper corners are pieces of mirror, reflecting the changing conditions of the sky, and even a touch of greenery from my yard. Some of the pieces are iridescent and their colors change with the light. The frame was lovingly made by my husband. I had a lot of fun creating this piece, and I kind of like the idea of being a tiger!

Tiger in the Jungle

This is a watercolor I created to depict what its like initially to learn you have Stage 4 metastatic breast cancer, and how you begin to adapt your life to do the things you love and to live each day as fully as you can. See the accompanying poem below: The Cancer Dome I

Confusion

By Don Reedy

August 17th, 2019

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