Debbie Havusha’s Blog: Yaron Butterfield -The Conqueror
Yaron Butterfield -The Conqueror
In 1997, Yaron Butterfield had the trip of a lifetime. When Yaron was 23, he spent 3 months in Tzfat, Israel on a program called ‘Livnot U’Lehibanot’.
Nestled in a corner of the Old Jewish Quarter of Tzfat, you can find a Jewish Experience Program like no other. Livnot U’Lehibanot, “To Build and Be Built” was established in 1980 to give young Jewish adults an opportunity to explore their Jewish heritage on their own terms, through experiences and hands-on activities. Being with young people from all over the world and building stronger Jewish connections had a great impact on what was to unfold for Yaron.
Six years after Yaron’s trip to Israel, Yaron was diagnosed at the age of 29 with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), a lethal brain cancer that robs far too many of their lives and certainly not on their own terms. April 5th, 2004, was the first day of chemotherapy treatment for Yaron. It also coincided with the first day of Passover. Yaron would be parting a very big sea with the divine and with themes of Jewish perseverance to guide him.
Although the divide at times seemed insurmountable, Yaron drew strength from many energy fields. Click here to see the sketch that he drew that fueled him with inspiration, hope and healing. http://www3.telus.net/yaron/art/pages/Time.html
Yaron noted passionately to me that the drawing he sketched provided enormous positive energy for him, and later, to the person he gifted it to. The drawing exemplifies bigger concepts that amongst many other things, gave him strength during the cancer fight. The drawing includes scenes from Tzfat, Jerusalem, and from the kibbutz he was at, Maale Hachamisha, which houses the monument of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. The apple symbolizes life. All symbols signify that time is connected; the past is connected to the future, and vice versa. The three prongs of the Hebrew letter ‘shin’ (created by the sweet bite of the apple) symbolize the past, present and future, all existing at once, and representing to some degree an essence of G-d. The soldier doesn’t like to fight, but does so, to protect his country. Likewise, Yaron states that we are forced to fight cancer and cancer spreads like the hatred of the Jews that has spread throughout the ages. Yaron confers that all this is wrong, and we need to beat it.
Yaron Butterfield has been working for the past 15 years at the BC Cancer Agency as a Cancer Genomics Researcher, decoding genome sequences that can unravel the mysteries of cancer and work towards a cure and/or an improved quality of life for a patient. (http://ybweb.bcgsc.ca)
Please support Yaron Butterfield on ‘The Ride to Conquer Cancer’ on August 29th, 2015. Visit Yaron’s donation page at: http://www.conquercancer.ca/goto/sid
Yaron has personally beat brain cancer and goes to work to conquer it for others through his fundraising efforts and his volunteer work. Yaron has certainly had to build and rebuild his own life-Livnot U’Lehibanot.
‘Yasher Koach’ Warrior and Conqueror- Yaron Butterfield!
Blog written by Debbie Havusha
