The Background Story Around the Launch of Rose and Redwood

Two and a half years ago, I was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. Doctors told me cancer had spread through my bones. My son – the greatest gift I have ever been given – was only nineteen months old. I had to stop breastfeeding because there were tumors in the space that lulled my son to sleep at night. I had to take medication that could hurt him.

I mostly kept quiet about the diagnosis, because I needed time to take a spiritual walk with God. I scaled back on work to make sure I had energy and time with my family. Especially Matsson, my little boy.

This journey has been hard in many ways. Our health insurance situation has been ridiculously stressful. We spend about $18k a year on premiums, deductibles, copays, etc. Eighteen thousand dollars per year.

In 2020, we began the year with employer benefits through my husband’s job. I was excited, until the medical bills came rolling in. Somehow, while my doctor is “in-network,” the hospital where she works is not. We had three separate deductibles to meet.

Now, we have been removed from his benefits because he has not worked enough hours, due to (drum roll please…) coronavirus.

I said this journey has been hard, and it has been. It’s been excruciatingly hard in ways I hope you can’t imagine. At the same time, it has been full of joy, love and support.

I have felt the presence of God in deeply moving, soul-affirming, beautiful being-ness connectedness. I feel the nature of my life purpose has been revealed, and it continues to unfold in miraculous ways.

One of these ways involves this start-up called Rose and Redwood, which encourages people to nurture their true nature.

The other is through an adventure book I am writing, called Rose and Lion.

Each day, I get up at 5:30 to meditate and write. I squeeze in 30-40 minutes of writing before my son wakes up. We’re keeping him home, due to the pandemic. And my health.

We are (temporarily) without healthcare in the midst of a pandemic and with a diagnosis of stage 4 cancer. Treatment and medicines on hold while we wait. The current healthcare insurance system in the United States is shaking my faith to depths I have not felt since December 15, 2017. Right now we don’t even know what kind of health insurance we can get on because we are lost in a mystifying storm of COBRA vs healthcare exchange vs Medicaid paperwork. Days are slipping by and I don’t have medicine. Because somehow, in America, I really can’t afford healthcare and be a mom. Let alone an entrepreneur.

This, combined with the economic pressures from the pandemic, has again brought me to my knees – seeking faith, finding hope, receiving love. Trusting God that miracles are here in front of me.

Our financial situation is pretty bumpy, due to the choices I made to prioritize my family and to listen to the still, small voice inside. That voice telling me to write and start Rose and Redwood. That voice telling me I am healing- am healed- no matter what evidence shows up. That voice shouting at me to keep going, keep trying and maybe, just maybe, ask for some help.

So this is me asking for help. I can’t build Rose and Redwood using our family finances.

I have some shirts for sale at Rose and Redwood. Would you buy one? If you buy the “classic” version, I will re-invest every penny of profit to fund the book and leadership development programs. Shop here.

I understand my family is not alone in these times. We are not the only family feeling the aftershocks of the pandemic. We are not the sole witnesses to the crumbling systems supporting school, healthcare and small businesses. We are not the only ones testifying to the aftershocks. We are not the only family inhaling dust from these decimated foundations, choking on remnants of things we once believed to be stable, while guarding hope for a full recovery.

And so, in turn, I offer you my support. Yes, I am still in the midst of my journey through dark places. And I am also well-seasoned and well-equipped to share what I have learned about nurturing yourself through darkness. Reach out if you need this wisdom. Truly. If you feel the pull, you need the guides. Reach out in your own way, regardless of the cause of your own journey through the shadows. Follow Rose and Redwood on Instagram and like us on Facebook. Sign up for emails on www.roseandredwood.com. Or be old-school and just send me a note or give me a call. Because I am here to help us all heal with the power of love. And I am staying here for a long while, God willing.

Again, please consider offering your support to launching Rose and Redwood. Buy a shirt, tell a friend, spread the story – please, whatever you can do, whatever you feel led to do, it helps.

Xo
Erika