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Debbie's Blog - Season 3, Episode 12: Getting to Know You, Part 2

I expect every one of us can say they know someone who's been diagnosed with cancer. A cousin I grew up with in Yakima, Washington (my hometown) died of leukemia.

I was devastated when I learned David had cancer. It was the year we both turned thirty and David was moved from our hometown medical facility to a Seattle hospital. My first trip to the hospital, located in the busy downtown area, threw me right out of my comfort zone. It didn't help that I became lost in the huge medical complex.

For several minutes I wandered the hallways disoriented and confused. Finally I stopped a doctor and asked how to get from where I was to where I needed to go.

"It's easy, " he said, "just go all the way down this hallway, take the first right, go to the end and walk through the doors marked Absolutely No Admittance."

I laughed, followed his instructions, and was soon exactly where I needed to be.

This is a story I often tell at writers conferences. It was that summer after David died that I made the decision to be a writer. I knew I could no longer stuff my dreams into the future with a long list of excuses and justifications.
And like that doctor told me, I had to be willing to walk through that door marked Absolutely No Admittance.

This is the same door we all face when we decide to follow our dreams and pursue our passions. I'm eternally grateful I did follow that dream and grateful that Hallmark and the Cedar Cove series is working to eradicate this disease.