* Sea Glass

In reading things that I write, you may often hear me say that I love the beach because, well I LOVE THE BEACH! It is my happy place. It is where I can take a good book, sit in my chair, put my toes in the sand, feel a cool breeze and gaze out at God’s beautiful ocean. A pretty extensive list but it really doesn’t get much better than that for me unless I’m with family.  While reading a devotional in Praying Through Cancer: Set Your Heart Free from Fear by Susan Sorensen and Laura Geist, the tip for the day was to find a symbol that reminds you of hope. I started thinking about what kind of symbol I could have that would remind me of the journey I have taken since being diagnosed with cancer. Of course, I knew it had to be something related to the beach because that is my place of refuge and peace. The symbol I chose was sea glass.

You might think the obvious choice would be a sea shell because they are everywhere at the beach and each one is different. Although I do love a beautiful shell, I really wanted something to represent my struggle. Sea glass goes into the ocean as an ugly, jagged piece of broken glass. It is through the process of being tossed and churned through the waves and scrapping along the sand in the bottom of the ocean that it begins to smooth out and develop its own unique character. It’s the struggle that makes it so beautiful.

Sea glass is a rare find when you’re on the beach and just like a sea shell, each piece is unique. It comes in all different sizes and colors based on what it looked like before it entered the ocean. Cancer is much like sea glass. It comes in many types and can have many different outcomes but for those who survive the struggle, it is life altering. Just as many of life’s’ struggles can be. I feel I am now a piece of sea glass made beautiful on the inside by all the turmoil of cancer. It gives me hope for the future. If you’ve had cancer, I pray you find your symbol of hope, too.

Blessings, Cindy J