Dianna’s Way is a true story about a remarkable woman’s irrepressible love of life, of a man and a woman’s enduring love for each other and their spiritual journey.

The story begins at a party when John, a man in his late forties, sees Dianna, a young woman in her late twenties. He is enthralled by her beauty, radiance, and ineffable sense of mystery. Dianna “is in Technicolor and everyone else is in black and white.”

They fall in love and marry.

Not long into their marriage, they discover she has an aggressive form of breast cancer, beginning a seventeen-year odyssey into the unknown. Expecting to be the teacher, not the student, John is humbled by the gradual discovery—the opposite is true in their marriage and in life. The author accompanies her each step of the way, profoundly awed by Dianna’s courage, determination, and lightness of being, and increasingly amazed by the undeniable healing effect she has on others. Along the way, she fulfills her life purpose and, in the process, helps John to discover then fulfill his own.

Theirs is a story of courage and determination laced with humor as they descend into the deepest valleys of disappointment, pain, and despair only to rise again to ever higher peaks of appreciation, gratitude, and love—an exploration into the nature of love, healing, and transformation. Even after her passing, their relationship pierces the illusion veiling this reality.

Dianna’s Way challenges us to consider a model for living beyond the usual drama manufactured by shame, guilt, regret, and fear of survival.

What does it mean to be human? What daily practices create a life that works? If we knew our significant relationships were designed in spirit, how might we live them more fully? How can we meet the challenges of disappointment, illness, and loss, yet still rise to our own highest potential?

Dianna’s Way, a story sprinkled with laughter and marinated in the gentleness of Dianna’s spirit, explores these questions.

It is a story about an ordinary human being who chose to live an extraordinary life.

Published in 2012, Dianna’s Way: Life as a Spiritual Journey Best Done With Dogs and Dear Friends–Having Cancer Is Optional is a story of love, laughter, and lessons for living. Take a look at the trailer.