This feels vulnerable to share and it feels like part of our healing

Ten years ago our lives were turned upside down when I was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer and I truly did not know if I would live to see this chapter of my life.

This April marks a decade since that diagnosis. And my daughter Zya just turned 30! There were seasons when her making it here felt just as uncertain.

When Zya was 7 years old, she was already in therapy at her elementary school, trying to find her footing in a world that didn’t quite make sense to her. Around that time, she made a collage... filled entirely with images of brown women, many Indian. No one suggested it. It wasn’t an assignment about culture. It was simply what called to her. I have never forgotten that.

She has struggled her whole life to navigate a society where she didn’t feel like she fit. Now, understanding that she is on the autism spectrum and has ADHD, there is so much more compassion and clarity around her journey. It has taken immense strength for her to be here at 30. I am so deeply proud of her.

We are incredibly grateful for the opportunity to go to India for three weeks — my second time, her first. It feels like answering something that has been whispering to her since she was a little girl. For me, it feels like a full-circle moment: survival, motherhood, devotion, and the grace of still being alive to witness this.

We have both been saving and have already paid for the retreat itself. Recently, unexpected financial shifts have made the remaining travel expenses heavier than we anticipated. We trust our future is steady — and right now, we need help.

Asking for support is not easy for either of us. This is a big, tender reach. If you feel moved to contribute any amount toward airfare, travel costs, and time off work you are supporting something that feels deeply life-changing for us both.

Thank you for holding us in this. Thank you for walking beside us.