Singer Nivea recently announced that she’s been diagnosed with leukemia, but she shared the news without sadness or fear, because treatment so far has been positive, and so has her mindset.
She shared the news while taking part in the popular Cadillac Chronicles. The series, which can be found on YouTube, is hosted by Brian Freeman. He drives around beloved R&B acts to sing their hits and talk about their journey while they ride through Atlanta in a vintage Cadillac.
“Well, first of all, I was diagnosed with leukemia earlier this year. And I’m so grateful to God,” she said while riding in the passenger seat. “I’ve been going through treatment, and everything is going great so far. And I expect it to continue. Amen, amen, amen. Very grateful for life.”
She noted that the hurdle has transformed her perspective. “It’s so cliché to say you don’t know the time nor the hour, but it’s true, and it just helped me put a lot of things in perspective, and I live in gratitude, like, religiously, and I’m just grateful for everything,” she said.
I’m doing things I wanna do,” she added, sharing that she’s pursuing new passions. “I’m definitely back into my music, and I’m going to school for audio engineering. I’ve always wanted to learn how to engineer, and mixing engineering in particular. In general, just doing all the things, honey. Loving on my children, and just being grateful. Taking on every opportunity that comes my way.”
Nivea is a mother of four, with all but one of her children adults (she shares her three oldest kids, Navy, London and Christian, with singer Terius “The-Dream” Nash, her ex-husband, and son Neal with rapper Lil Wayne). They are what she’s most grateful for. But these days, she’s thankful for so much.
“Don’t take anything for granted,” she told Freeman when asked about one of the biggest lessons she’s learned. “I definitely, in my younger years, the days just flew, and I was just doing what I was doing. It’s kind of like you don’t recognize the short time we do have here. I’ve always noticed the beauty in everything…but to be more present in the moment is definitely something I’ve learned. This time will never occur again. Being more present in the moment. Counting the blessings.”
Nivea maintains that focusing on the good things and not worrying about the negative for long goes a long way in helping her have peace amid this journey she’s on now with her health.
“It’s easy to point out the negative. But the universe, God, or whatever you want to call it, your brain will find the things you focus on. Where the mind goes, energy goes. So I just try to think of positive things. I’m a very optimistic person,” she said. “If you focus on the bad, it will continue to show you more of that. What you think and what you set your mind on is what becomes your reality.”
