So where the heck have I been? Well, for starters, I’ve been LIVING (my now favorite activity). But I’ve also been busy getting UBER clear on who I am now (and who I’m not), exploring the edges & undulations of the thumbprint of God on me‑decoded version: what exactly it is that I and only I can do‑falling apart a million and freakin’ CLEARING THE DECKS. In summary, I remade myself. Again.

We live in a world that comes at us with a ever increasing zillion and one options for a bazillion and one things. All at once. 24/7. And for someone who knows better (thanks to a year of required house isolation post-bone marrow transplants a couple of years ago) the constant deluge of the information and activity in the world at large, along with a barrage of messaging, answers, pitches, agendas, opinions & slogans can be,quite frankly, overwhelming. But the truth is, it’s only overwhelming when we’re not crystalline clear on who WE are, what WE reeeealy want, what problems WE need to work on & what problems WE can solve for others. Then, and only then, the gush slows to a blessed trickle of highly useful, highly impactful, highly ENERGIZING info that ticks all our boxes, allowing the other bazillion options to slide effortlessly from our sphere of attention and out of our already overstuffed lives to create some beautiful (and much needed) SPACE. Can I get a “amen”?!

So drilling down on that even further:

“CLARITY IS POWER. And it’s worth spending some serious time on.” ‑@phillips_alyssa

(and yes, that’s a good “tweet tweet”, if you do the “tweet tweet” thing :))

And guess what? Around the time we last spoke I realized I wasn’t clear in some key areas. So I did the one thing we’re not taught to do and is considered heresy these days. I waited.

More specifically, I actively waited. What does that mean? Well, it means that you allow a process bigger than you to happen while doing the work you need to to do your part in the process. Think of a baby oak tree that’s just wrestled it’s way out of the earth. Just like you wouldn’t go yanking on the tender sprout or scream at it to grow faster, allowing it to grow up on its own accord & trusting the innate wisdom inherent in, you’d still water and tend to it, protecting it as it takes root. Sometimes in our lives WE’RE tender shoots. Strong in possibility but fragile in our newness.

This was me in a very real way for a long while. I had the wisdom of a sturdy oak imprinted on the inside but I knew I was still too bendable to be out in the elements for long stretches. There’s power & strength in being both fragile & strong. Lesson: Sometimes herimitude is the wise, loving choice. To let ourselves get strong and allow a larger process to happen. …And sometimes it’s just a cop out. An important distinction to make and I’ve learned to get really honest with myself as to which one I’m up to.

So after spending a (unplanned) YEAR getting crystalline clear on my “stuff”, I’m more “oak-ish”. On me. On how I’m wired‑‘cause it’s all changed. A lot. On my vision. On my purpose. On my brand. On my dreams. On my desires. On the people I want to spin in my orbit. On what I want to learn. On who & what I need to say hello to and also where I need to say goodbye. Even on something as basic as what it takes for me to say “yes”. (Which, by the way, I think it’s pretty darn good, if I do say so myself, and if you’d like to take a peek or use mine as a spring board for making your own “Yes” Filter, take a look at the image I made for you below).

Anyway, I want to keep this on the short side of long and I promise be back in touch soon to share the awesomeness that I’ve been working hard on for you but I want you to know that the biggest transition I’ve made over the last year has been a self-prescribed shift from “me” to “YOU”. I’m blessed to know that part of my purpose is to indeed share my story, a story that has always been bigger than me, but now it’s time to share the “how”, the “why” & “how you can too” part. And it’s gonna be awesome. I can’t wait to share it with you.

And hey, at least if my motivations about any of this are ever called into question I can always point back to this time as a shining example of “what not to do when starting a new endeavor if you’re just in it for the money/fame/attention/whatever” and be able to say with absolute confidence: “Really?? ‘Cause if I were just in it for me, then I never, ever ever would of set down my new “baby” for a whole year simply because God nudged me in the ribs and said, “We gotta get you clear on a couple things first.” And since I roll where God tells me to now…

This not so subtle nudge from above to get my hiney back in the saddle again came from some exciting, time-sensitive news. I’m thrilled to shine a well-deserved spotlight on the bone marrow group where I was treated by telling you that they now have the #1 survival rate in the nation and will appear on the Discovery Channel’s show “The Profile Series” at 7am TOMORROW MORNING in a featured medical segment by Larry King called “IN VIEW”. And needless to say, I was more than a little humbled when they asked me to do it with them. So, if you want take a peek or just check out my sassy new “do” (hint: I can now cut my own hair with electric clippers!), then be sure to tune in! :)

And thank you, as always, for hanging out with me here, for inviting me into your world & for being YOU. We’re all “works in progress” & I want to help you however I can to be the best version of you possible. And I want to hear about YOUR new “Yes” Filter. In the comments below tell me what it now takes for YOU to say “yes”, times in your life when YOU”VE been a “new shoot”, waited for a process to occur or even when you didn’t wait but wished you had. I want to hear it all! :)

With a happy heart to be back in the saddle again & scads of love…

That’s right, ALL GOOD! Say it with me now, “YIPPIE!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Told ya there would be a disco point straight up into the air in praise to the One and in gratitude for all of YOU! How about we go show everyone else how to disco trot through their challenges, too?? ;)

Blessings to all and a big, big hug!

Redefining CT Scans

Contrast Time! Ummmm, yummmmmmy!

Hard to believe but it’s that time again…Scan Time!! Yep, time for my FOUR-YEAR check to show them how wonderfully healthy and cured I am! : ) And I do like to do a little disco dance as I go in and out on the day of 1. in celebration of how far we’ve come from a time when we were were doing anything but and 2. to show people on the outside what I feel like on the inside. Lots of glittery disco moves going on inside! Somehow I find myself super relaxed as this one rolls around and more bold—with a quite, humble confidence—for the journey I’ve walked and overflowing gratitude for our blessings, big and small, every day. Plus, when you shed your fear of dying, everything else feels a whole lot lighter!

So I hope you’ll join me this Monday morning in some groovy moves, positive prayers and a disco point straight up into the air to praise the One who has made this all possible! Scan time is 10 am and I’ll look forward to sharing more awesome news of our modern-day miracle! Something beautiful IS happening™! So let’s go show ‘em how it’s done, shall we??

Okay, so that’s not really a hint… But I was super excited to stumbled on an article Runner Digest posted on my story a few months back in regards to National Cervical Health Month! Thanks so much Runner Digest for the awesome surprise! An honor!!

Check it out here:

“Miracle Cervical Caner Survivor Alyssa Phillips Uses January’s National Cervical Health Awareness Month To Talk About The Rare For That Almost Took Her Life”

With farm stand season about to kick into full swing, I thought it might be helpful to give share my cheat sheet for what is best to buy organic (because really high pesticide residues with regular) and what’s okay to eat conventional or non-organic (because low pesticide residue). Beyond the pesticide issue there are other reasons to eat organic—higher levels of vitamins and minerals for example—but that’s another topic all together! So the rule of thumb is fresh, local and organic is best (especially when you can help support your local farmers—”Yea, famers!! We’d all go hungry without you!), but when time, money or convenience get in the way of that, go by this list!

Choose Organic:

Fruits

Apples

Cherries

Grapes

Peaches

Pears

Red Raspberries

Strawberries

Veggies

Bell Pepper

Celery

Green Beans

Hot Peppers

Potatoes

Spinach

Winter Squash

Okay for Non-Organic/Conventional:

Fruits

Banana

Blueberries

Grapefruit

Kiwi

Mango

Papaya

Pineapple

Plantain

Plum

Watermelon

Veggies

Asparagus

Avocado

Broccoli

Brussel Sprouts

Cabbage

Cauliflower

Eggplant

Okra

Onion

Radish

Hope this helps! Enjoy!

Click here to read the article, including by tips:  ”How we choose to fight our fight matters” & “A cancer diagnosis is a call to step into our power, not give it away”.

Thanks Coping!!

A single sentence doesn’t even begin to do justice to what my husband did for me & us throughout this journey. He literally loved me back to life in every way and there aren’t enough words of gratitude for that. It will take me a lifetime (or three) to show him what that has meant. It takes a “village” to get through something like this and I am forever grateful to so, so many but because of the extended period of  required “isolation” on my healing path, my husband was by my side when others were not allowed and saw it all. Glamour, thank you for highlighting the A M A Z I N G man I am so proud to call my husband & best friend!!

Anyway, make sure to join in on our tweet chat Monday by using #LibreClothing and, not only can you ask me anything, but you’ll be entered to win a $25 VISA gift card! Now that’s what I’m talking about! See you in “Twitter Land”!

Oh, and also, they were super sweet and did an awesome blog post on moi! Click here to take a look: Alyssa Phillips Battle With Cancer + A Give-a-way

Thanks Libre & “see” ya Monday!!  (Follow up note: If you missed our tweet chat session you can check out the transcript of it here!)

Happy Leap Year Everyone! I’m using today as a unique reminder that miracles happen and dreams come true only when we take the leap out into the unknown on faith and faith alone. Actually, that’s the very definition of faith! I learned this in a very real way when I was shoved off the cliff of the “known” and forced to build my wings on the way down, instinctively reaching for something beyond sight, just to have a shot at surviving. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend learning that way, but I can tell you, you learn fast when you have to and your hiney’s on the line!

So I learned to live a completely different way, first out of necessity but now, in the process of being “remade” through this, I exist in the world in a completely different way. I now take leap after wonderful, bold, scary leap—only now it’s as a clear and conscious choice vs being hurled over—knowing the magic that is hidden in plain sight for all us that patiently waits and calls to us quietly while our knees shake and our courage trembles as we teeter on the inevitable edges and abysses in life saying, “It’s OK, I’ll catch you. But you have to jump first.”

That my friends—our free will—is the only barrier between where we are and where we want to be. So I don’t know about you, but I’m not only jumping, I’m getting a good running head-start first so I can jump even further this time! BELIEVE.

And remember, “We are what we have the courage to become and we are stronger than we know” —me :).

I was so excited when I was asked to speak at this! Nothing better than sharing hope and the “wisdom from the road” that helped save my life.  Plus, we witnessed a miracle and I LOVE talking about it!

Oh, and give your self a hug today… :)

(Seriously, I do this every day & I highly recommend it!)