Send a text

What happens when you are just three months away from celebrating ten years cancer-free… and you hear the words no survivor ever wants to hear again:

“You have cancer.”

In this powerful episode of the Still I Rise Podcast, Lisa sits down with cancer survivor Jeannie Travalini, whose life was turned upside down when cancer returned just before her long-awaited 10-year milestone.

Jeannie shares her deeply personal story of navigating a second diagnosis, the emotional toll of recurrence, and the unexpected ways faith, nature, and resilience carried her through some of life’s darkest moments.

Using the metaphor of weeds in a garden, Jeannie reflects on how life’s toughest challenges—like cancer, loss, and uncertainty—can become the very experiences that shape our strength and growth.

In this conversation, you’ll hear about:

• The emotional shock of cancer recurrence after nearly a decade
• How faith and spirituality helped her through the hardest moments
• The lifestyle and holistic changes she embraced after her diagnosis
• Finding strength in unexpected places
• Why life’s “weeds” sometimes become our greatest teachers

Jeannie’s story entitled "Weeds that Grow Us" is raw, honest, and inspiring—a reminder that resilience doesn’t always look perfect. Sometimes it simply means getting up and trying again.

If you or someone you love is navigating breast cancer, cancer survivorship, or recurrence, this episode will remind you that even in life’s hardest seasons, hope can still grow.

Listen now to Jeannie’s powerful story of survival, faith, and rising again.

Support the show

Still I Rise features stories from You Night's STORY CRAFTING COMMUNITY. To read additional stories, visit our Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/YouNightStories. Would you like to participate in a 6-week Story Crafting small group experience so that you can share your story? Write to us at teamyounight@gmail.com

Send a text

In this powerful episode of Still I Rise, Alana Acereto shares her story, “The Darkness and the Light,” a deeply moving reflection on childhood trauma, generational healing, and her journey as a cancer survivor.

For years, Alana sought healing through therapy, trying to untangle the chaos left by early trauma. She shares that participating in Story Crafting was the first process that truly allowed her to release the pain she had carried for decades. While some parts of her story remain sacred and were shared privately within her small group, she chose to tell her public story through powerful metaphor — describing darkness, light, and the courage it takes to break cycles.

When she became a mother, Alana made a defining decision: the shadows of her past would not shape her daughter’s future. That commitment to bring light into darkness carried her not only through trauma recovery, but also through her own battle with cancer.

This episode explores childhood trauma healing, breaking generational cycles, motherhood as protection, cancer survivorship, and the power of storytelling as therapy. It is a testament to the truth that healing does not erase the darkness — it teaches us how to carry light into it.

If you are navigating trauma, illness, or the quiet work of rewriting your story, this episode will remind you: your light matters — even when it flickers.

Support the show

Still I Rise features stories from You Night's STORY CRAFTING COMMUNITY. To read additional stories, visit our Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/YouNightStories. Would you like to participate in a 6-week Story Crafting small group experience so that you can share your story? Write to us at teamyounight@gmail.com

Send a text

Some journeys aren’t flat roads — they’re mountains.

Mountains with loose rocks beneath your feet.
Mountains that make your heart race.
Mountains that force you to stop, breathe, and pray before taking the next step.

Today’s guest, Maryann Fonseca, describes her life as climbing toward the highest peak — even though she’s afraid of heights. Along the way, she’s heard the echo of her sister’s encouragement, felt the steady love of family, endured abuse, navigated motherhood at nineteen, and leaned on the unwavering support of her husband of 37 years.

Then, in April of 2014, she received the words no woman is ever prepared to hear: breast cancer.

Thirty rounds of radiation. Five years of Tamoxifen. Physical pain. Emotional exhaustion. And yet — that was not the summit.

In 2016, at a retreat in Sedona, something shifted. On a run through the mountains, Maryann experienced a spiritual awakening — a moment she describes as entering a vortex of healing. The woman she had been no longer existed. A new version was born.

Since then, she has run marathons. Founded her wellness company, Colorfull Aura. And committed her life to becoming a light for others — especially women and minority women navigating breast cancer and beyond.

She is no longer climbing in fear.
She is climbing with purpose.

This is Maryann Fonseca’s story.

Reaching the Peak.

Support the show

Still I Rise features stories from You Night's STORY CRAFTING COMMUNITY. To read additional stories, visit our Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/YouNightStories. Would you like to participate in a 6-week Story Crafting small group experience so that you can share your story? Write to us at teamyounight@gmail.com