Rock art brings joy, comfort during cancer treatment
“I was diagnosed with breast cancer, and they took it out. So now I’m going through radiation.
“I had anxiety for a long time. That’s one of the reasons I started painting rocks. I wanted to have something else to focus on. The very first time I saw a child get one of my rocks, that excited reaction just lifted my spirits.
“I have a friend, Betsy Wheeler, who also paints for the Baytown Rocks group. She’s always bringing me rocks and setting them on my doorstep when I’m not home. She used to work with my husband. So one time they met up and concocted a plan to hide some painted rocks in my house. I went into the bathroom and was like, wait, those are Betsy’s rocks. But how did they get in my bathroom? Throughout the day, I found more and more rocks around the house that she had painted.
“Another time, a lady I met online who is part of a group where she lives on Whidbey Island in Washington sent me five rocks painted by various artists.
“Things like that, and painting rocks myself, have definitely helped me get through this cancer experience. Just knowing that people are thinking about you and care for you, it makes a world of difference when you’re the one going through something like this.”
— Peggy Martin
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