Barbara’s Leprechaun: The Healing Power of Story details a quest to live out a dream. Steeped in legends of leprechauns, Barbara yearns to go to Ireland, but doesn’t declare her heart’s desire until she’s completed cancer treatments. The author, a long-time friend, encourages her to go now. The nonfiction book explores what happens next, as Barbara faces her own fears and her family’s resistance.
Barbara’s Leprechaun shows the healing power of assertiveness and of taking action. Traveling with her friend, appreciating the real as well as the legendary Ireland, Barbara regains her independence a day at a time. She returns home healthier, more confident, and forever changed in her family’s eyes. Her loved ones gain surprising benefits, too.
Barbara is one of over eighteen million people alive today with a history of cancer, according to the 1998 American Cancer Society report. These survivors need a model of success, somebody with courage enough to do something meaningful and daring, one who can inspire them to follow their own dreams.
Barbara’s Leprechaun is a good read that combines travel with personal growth. Reading the book is itself good medicine, an easy-to-take prescription for independence that transcends the confines of roles such as patient or survivor. By modifying the steps seen in this case study and adapting them to one’s own individual needs, the reader can take pleasure in the adventures and joys of a fully-realized life.