Please join Synkroniciti in welcoming back our first artist of “Recovery,” writer Treanor Wooten Baring of Houston, Texas. Her essay, “MISSIVES FROM THE LIFEBOAT,” one of our contest finalists, consists of a series of dated blog posts examining her experience in treatment for an aggressive cancer. These thoughts have been edited and re-interpreted by present day Treanor, supplying the perspective that she did not have at the time. Writing gives us such power to frame and find meaning in our stories, and Treanor is a master in shaping her narrative into an approachable tale full of pragmatism.
“I’m into metaphors in general—I call metaphor alert for this entire piece. You have been warned—There are some metaphors I refuse to use. Battle, fight, war. Instead, I’m going to frame it as a journey, sailing.
I grew up in South Florida, on the water. We owned a sloop. So, many of my favorite metaphors are about sailing. I feel like I’m on a small boat now, on a turbulent sea. I have to change what is happening in my body from cell chaos to cell health. It’s about healing, not fighting.”
Treanor was set to go into treatment when Covid appeared, isolating her and delaying everything. And this delay was providential, for in those three weeks, a new treatment was approved to treat this cancer, one that saved her life.
The stock “warrior” myth foisted on to people in recovery often makes us feel as if we have to live up to expectations of “winning,” turning our focus to keeping up appearances of strength rather than concentrating on healing. Avoiding this exhausting trope does not make Treanor’s story any less courageous. She draws us in by being herself and is able to strike a balance between vulnerability and dignity. She perseveres. She thrives in new and unexpected ways.
“My spine has fractured from bone loss. I was standing at the sink when I suddenly couldn’t even hold myself upright. I am in intensive physical therapy so that I can position myself for radiation, despite intense pain. Radiation is delayed. I am the “it girl” of weird reactions and events.”
We will all face situations in our lives that are too big for us to handle alone. Treanor doesn’t tell us how we should handle it. She shows us how she navigated her own storm in her own little boat, and her experience is informative, strategic and comforting.
Read “MISSIVES FROM THE LIFEBOAT” in Synkroniciti’s “Recovery” issue, available for purchase here: https://synkroniciti.com/the-magazine/purchase-individual-issues/.
Treanor Wooten Baring’s first name was supposed to be Jane. But, when she was born, in an hour and a half, her mother took one look at her screaming, kicking girl-boss baby and said, “That ain’t no Jane.” Armed with her great-grandmother’s unpronounceable family name (it rhymes with “Dana”) as her new first name, Treanor grew up in the Mississippi Delta surrounded by artists and writers. She published her first poem at age five. She went to film school in Boston and became a producer/director for educational television.
Her plays have been performed in the U.S., Canada, Australia, the U.K. and Vietnam. She is the spring 2022 winner of The Ghost Story Supernatural Fiction Award. Her essay, “The River,” was nominated for a “Best of the Net” award by Synkroniciti. Because she knows what a blessing it is to have one’s creativity nurtured, she considers it her life’s purpose to promote creativity in herself and others.