Whistle a happy tune

Sandra Bollen-Hughes elaborates on how a positive quote or song can be used to fill your mind with strength and positivity while treatment is ongoing.

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Have you seen the musical, The King and I, by Rodgers and Hammerstein? On their arrival in Siam, the son, Louis, comes to the main character, Anna Leonowens, asking her if she ever gets afraid. In true Rodgers and Hammerstein style, she bursts into the song, I whistle a happy tune, and tells him to do the same.

She goes on to give him the advice that he should make believe he is brave, because he may find he is actually as brave as he is pretending to be. Whistling a happy tune is her way of encouraging him to put on a brave face in the presence of his fears. In doing this, she shares the wisdom of a saying that he can hang onto in tough and frightening times.

Words that inspire

Sayings that are meant to inspire us have made a strong come back of late with the burgeoning of social media. In reading around this, I came across the theory that positive quotations support the creativity of the subconscious mind. By reading or sharing a positive saying, we fill our minds with things that are inspiring and uplifting to move forward in tough times.

Posting or forwarding happy messages may be the 2024 equivalent to whistling a happy tune, so that we start to feel that positive and brave and inspired motivation ourselves as it filters into the subconscious. But what may inspire you while on your cancer journey may look a little different to other times.

My own inspiration

Songs and sayings definitely supported my emotional buoyancy during my treatment of breast cancer. The song that most inspired me to keep going was, When You Walk Through a Storm. The song reminded me that there would be an end to this storm that would bring golden skies. I was reminded that I was not on this journey alone. The words really uplifted me in very dark times.

I also coined my own saying to describe what I was experiencing. I told others, “In times of darkness, the light shines much brighter.” I felt that the light of the love of others and the support of family and friends was much clearer and obvious to me while I travelled on the cancer journey.

In contrast, a saying by Aristotle that may inspire you is, “It is during our darkest moments that we must focus to see the light.” Here he encourages us to look for that which will be inspiring to us in our worst times when the light may seem to be dim.

Coin a phrase

What phrase can you coin yourself today that will feel like a blanket of comfort? Alternatively, you might prefer to find a phrase online or listen to a song that makes you ready to get up and go again. A religious text or quote may be your thing. You may find you need to change the saying regularly as the subconscious searches for newness and creativity. If you feed the subconscious a diet of inspiration, keep it fresh. Also, keep your saying real and relevant to you. Too much sugar is no better for the mind than it is for the body.

Where to start?

To get you started, here are a few famous inspirational sayings that may be suited to cancer warriors.

President Roosevelt said that,“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”

King Solomon reminded us that, “This too shall pass.”

Confucius urged us to, keep life simple because, “Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.”

I’m hoping you can coin your own inspirational saying or find your own happy tune to whistle or a quote to hold close in the tough times. And if you are all out of inspiration, remember the famous song of Anna Leonowens, “You may be as brave as you make believe you are.”

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