Challenges shaped Lund's life, books

Corrine Lund has been through a lot.

The Apple Valley resident fought her way past breast cancer, helped her husband as he battled a cancer of his own and watched as friends and family fought through challenges of all types and sizes. Through it all, she realized she wasn’t alone in her fight.

“I experienced cancer at a rather young age. Did a lot of making of things. I made a very big fabric hanging — that was my celebration thing,” Lund said. “I think it’s more than therapeutic. I think it’s necessary that you do something other than your medical necessities. I also learned I’m not the only one going through a challenge. Other people are and you need each other. If it’s supporting somebody or if you’re the one needing support, I don’t think we’re meant to go through challenges alone. We tend to think of challenges as big, significant, but it’s so many things. Our friends are going through so many health challenges, and the older you get, the bigger the challenge is.”

At first, the longtime art educator and native of Minnesota decided to put her thoughts and feelings into things like her artwork. Then, she began to write. Those journals became the basis for her first book, “God Bless Them for the Journey.”

The book is not just on Lund’s journey through cancer, it’s about a self-awakening to joy and finding her true path through God. Each section is a story, but also an opportunity for readers to not just relate to the story, but participate in and find their own way through the challenges they are facing.

“The first one is not about cancer, but it’s about all the things we face, experience. It’s a book you can participate in. A section would start with a particular purpose. There would be a story, but also space because I have to write in the books I read,” Lund said.

While the book was very therapeutic in many ways, it was also a learning experience for Lund. She attempted to self-publish the book, but didn’t know enough about the process, running into obstacle after obstacle. She was finally able to overcome all of that and the book was published in 2019 by LitFire Publishing.

Now, with a book in hand, she didn’t know what to do next. Fortunately, a doctor friend purchased several books and took them, along with Lund, to a nearby park. They listened to others tell their stories of challenges they faced, then gave them each a book.

“That first experience mushroomed into a lot of contact with groups. I attended an annual event at Mount Carmel (Hospital) for cancer survivors, and I had my books and art. That filled me as much as anything. Small groups, support groups, I did a lot of that with that (first) book,” Lund said.

Her husband, Art, then was diagnosed with colon cancer and life came to a halt once again for Corrine. Trips to the doctor and hospitals began to take up most of their time. There wasn’t time for vacations to Maine, like they had done in the past.

That time also helped her realize they were getting older. Now 81, Lund realized that life is all about relationships, especially those closest to you. That became the premise for her second book, “Life is a Process: Aging is a Part of the Journey.”

“You don’t realize right away that you’re getting older. I’m 81, so I’ve been around awhile. I think we’ve always been aware of doing good things for ourselves. Not things you had to be rich, but vacations. They don’t have to be big, but you’ve got to feed yourself someway,” Lund said. “Then you get yourself in situations where you can’t ignore health wise. My husband had colon cancer the last year and a half. We went to the doctor more than we went to the grocery store. You don’t do those things alone. You grow older with each other. That’s pretty much what this book is about.

“For me it was a way I could share my story. You don’t do it alone. I think that’s why there’s tragic life stories. Because people do try to do it alone.”

Lund’s books are available through Amazon or Barnes & Noble. She also has copies available and can be reached at corrineandart@gmail.com.