(upbeat orchestral music) - [Narrator] Murphy Austin Adams Schoenfeld LLP, focusing on business law and commercial litigation, is proud to support "Rob on the Road: Region Rising."

More information available at murphyaustin.com.

(upbeat orchestral music) (upbeat rock music) - [Narrator] And now, "Rob on the Road," exploring Northern California.

- Hi there, I'm Rob Stewart, my guest today is West Sacramento Council Member Quirina Orozco.

It was November 10th, 2022, the mother of four and deputy district attorney went to a routine doctor's appointment and would discover she had stage 4 cancer, the prognosis, terminal, three years to live.

But that was three years ago.

Today, Quirina Orozco is still embracing life and measures her life in meaningful moments instead of years.

- I think every day for me is really a celebration of life, and over the last three years, I've had the ups and downs, some pretty pronounced downs and some pretty amazing highlights, and I really like the way the highlights feel.

I think that's, like, one of the most incredible ways of living life, and so, I really try and focus intentionally on creating that jumping-off point, it's kind of a factory setting that I seek, and for a variety of reasons, so I will be celebrating by embracing all of the gifts that I have, whether that be my family, my community, my current state of health, which is not what most people think, but needless to say, I'm here and as long as I wake up, I get to celebrate.

- What do you mean by your current state of health is not what most people think?

I'm assuming you're talking about... Because of... You look fantastic.

- Thank you.

Thank you.

Sometimes, I put in a lot of work to present this way, but I'll tell you what, my... - Is that what you're referring to?

- Maybe, I think... Let's put it this way, not too long ago, I was walking down the street very slowly when I bumped into a neighbor, and the neighbor had congratulated me and said... You know, apologized for not reaching out, which was not a big deal whatsoever on my book, I wasn't at all expecting that, but she said, "Congratulations on your..." You know, "Being in remission, congratulations on your cure," and I didn't know what to do with that because quite frankly, I have visited several wonderful practitioners over the last three years and all around the United States, all of whom have told me that there is no cure for me, and that there isn't really a likelihood at all that I will experience a day of remission given the advanced condition that I have, but what she was responding to, I'm sure, was the fact that I was outside, to the fact that I was living, the fact that I could get out of my own way to take my dog out and to get some fresh air, and because I lived and exuded the energy of someone who didn't have a care about cancer at that moment, it might have appeared to her that I was cured of cancer, that I was experiencing remission, that would be lovely, but I've learned over the last three years that I have to live my life as a woman that is seeking a place of healing, even if that doesn't involve a cure, even if that doesn't involve remission, and those... That way of being alive and releasing attachment to, you know, others' expectations or what other folks with this condition might do in their shoes, I have to do this my way.

The way we sit here today is not how it always looked.

I think... You know, I got this diagnosis and my first instinct was to go out into the world and to prove to everyone that everything was okay, and I went back to a lot of the same habits, I went to the events, I was out there just trying to show everyone that I had this, it was this kind of a false representation of a superpower that I'm not even sure I felt, I just was hopeful at the time, and then, unfortunately, despite surgery and some amazing clinical trial that... And the drugs that I endured with a local hospital, my cancer had spread further and it really proved to us that this disease was pretty mighty, and that it didn't care how I... How much power I had, or what my title was or, you know, how important I was to somebody else, it was going to do what it was gonna do, and so, I was humbled, and at that point, really changed my life immensely, and through the process of chemotherapy and losing 20 pounds in a month, and, you know, being so weak and cold at times that my husband was really the person who dressed me and helped me present to the outer world, whether that be in a wheelchair at times or with a cane at others, I still fought my way to continue to keep getting up, the fetal position didn't suit me, so I wanted to go... Keep going.

It wasn't the cancer diagnosis initially that stopped me in my tracks, I think it was the progression of the disease that really taught me that no matter how magnanimous I was, or my ego, whatever my ego said about who I was, or my titles, or how people behaved when I walked into a room, cancer had its own plan, and so, when it spread, I realized that, "Wow, you know, it's time to have a death talk," and so, my husband and I, I'm not secretive about this at all, this is real, we had to really sit down, and it was the most miserable... God, it just... Even thinking about it gives me chills right now because we had to sit down and really talk about what happens next, do we sell our house?

Do we, you know...?

I know for sure we have to get an estate plan, but how does this go?

And what we decided was, well, I would like to have a celebration of life while I'm still alive, I would love to have a party with the ones that I love, not after I'm gone and can't enjoy them, but let's go ahead and dance to "Dancing Queen," which is my husband's favorite song for me, and have a party, and let's go ahead and make sure that I go into hospice care and that my bed will be in the living room, and that my friends could come in and visit, because those are the people that keep me alive, right?

But once you get that low, once you get to the bottom of a well, any way is up, and after that, it just really kind of detached me from the fear of... And lots of things that would hold me back, the way I lived had to go, and the way I know it now, it was just a matter of reinvention and a constant metamorphosis, and it's happening between Monday and... - That's brilliant.

- Well, it's real, though, it's not always intentional, it's just that, you know, I could be a victim or I could be an adventurer.

- Let me ask you this, when you had the big talk, the death talk, and you got all that out, did you find freedom after that?

- Complete and absolute liberation.

- Complete and absolute liberation.

- You know, I have over-accomplished in my entire life... - Yes, you have.

- And to be really honest with that, I think that my fear of being seen as I really was to folks, I mean, the fact that my mother was 16 years old when she gave birth to me, the fact that we have navigated every single neighborhood in the region of Sacramento, if there was a low-income housing area, we would have found it because she was a single mom raising, you know, her maniac kid, you know, quite frankly, we lived our lives growing up together making all the mistakes, and so when people say, "Make ends meet," the ends never met for us, we just hustled together, and, you know, the realization that I didn't wanna be seen by others as this, you know, poor South Sacramento kid that, you know, had no face value, I just... I always, always tried to over-accomplish, and seek approval and affirmation, and all of these accomplishments, all the A's, right?

Well, I'll tell you that climbing and that incessant drive caused this momentum that, you know, led me to UC Berkeley, and then, you know, to thrive there, and to over-accomplish there, and to graduate, and then, get accepted to Harvard, and from Harvard to the White House, and to work for the President of the United States, and then, ultimately, back here to Sacramento where I applied to law school and have been for the last 20 years as a child abuse... Well, I should say a prosecutor, I did child abuse for many years and it's my passion, but that said, you know, cancer was one of those accomplishments that I couldn't necessarily just treat, like, I can't just outwork it, you know, it's a part of me and I have to live with it, and try and seek healing even if it... Like I said, even if it's not a pure cure, but what's cool is that now, I realize that even without all of the titles, even without all of the accolades or the recognitions, or any awards, I wake up as this whole human being, and I say... I invite people to look at me as I am now, because at the end of the day, we only get this one wild and precious life, and we should embrace it, we should really be proud of it, and I know it's full of blemishes and things that we wish we could hide from the world, but, I don't know, fear keeps you trapped from exploring and there's no prison that's worse than that, that prison of the mind, and I- - You talk about this, about fear, that it's "False Evidence Appearing Real," and that some of us run to fear, I'm a fear thinker, I run to fear, but it's also another acronym and it's, "Face Everything And Rise," and that's... Or for you even, "Face Everything And Reinvent," because you have been someone who has reinvented your moments and redefined your life.

You've decided, you told me, what you pick up and put on your wings.

- That's right, there's a saying, right?

I mean, if you wanna fly, you need to release the weight on your wings, and that's true, you know, I've had conversations with folks that are similarly situated, and we can sit and compare, and count all the weights that we carry as a result of this new life that we now have, right?

I mean, I won't lie, this morning, I don't love to present this part of it, but, I mean, you know, I told you I was having some trouble waking up and... Not waking up, but getting up 'cause I have inflammation, and that really attacks my body sometimes as a result of my chemotherapy, and as a result of that, it makes it very difficult for me to walk, and it's... This morning was pretty immense, and, you know, to crawl, 'cause you can't use your feet and the feet hurt regardless if you're stepping on 'em or not, they just hurt worse when you're standing up, and to be humbled by the ability... Or the lack of ability to just do the regular things that I used to enjoy, but at the same time, the moment of gratitude when you can actually step back on a foot pain-free, it's just immense, and so, my performance can keep resurfacing that my mindset matters more, not only to others, but to me, because my body is listening, and I'm a firm believer that the way I approach this illness, regardless of whether or not it cures me or not, it definitely heals me every day.

- Wow.

That tells me that it's not a performance.

- (laughs) No longer.

- That it's real, that you're... You know, you get up and you face, crawl, whatever the day looks like, you face it and you somehow find a way to transcend how you're feeling into what you're facing, into then changing how you feel to a higher level, and that impacts your body.

Now, that's huge.

- Yeah, it's my greatest tool as a mother, first of all, to inspire my children, I could save all the money I can for, you know, a higher education, but as they watch me every morning become and transcend, they know that that's a possibility for them, these lessons that I give them on the ride to school or, you know, at the end of the day when it's been a long day and there's been pain involved, those are the moments where I inspire this belief, and hope, and connection, and a strong purpose for living, and they are, my children are my strongest reason for living, my people, my village, my community, you know, a close second, but, you know, the crazy thing is you have to believe in your ability, you know, despite... I mean, I've been to the best cancer centers in the nation, MD Anderson, Dana-Farber, Mayo Clinic, you know, Davis, UC Davis, and they've all said that there isn't much hope for a cure or remission, but they comment on my unfettered commitment to thriving, and, you know, I have to believe that, you know, my mind can tell my body how to respond to all of this 'cause I think that belief is the most powerful... I mean, more powerful than any pharmaceutical, quite frankly, and I'm not just coming up with this stuff, I mean, there have been... - I know you're not.

- That, you know, support that, and ever since... For the last two years, I've surrounded myself with like-minded thinkers with my podcasts and my research, and, you know, listening to audiobooks about cancer and surviving, and, you know, there have been meta-analysis... Analyses that have been performed... Or excuse me, published, not performed, that talk about, you know, how our belief system triggers our body into healing states, so I'm just hopeful that my way of living, regardless of whether or not it changes my biological state or not, which I hope it does and I believe it will, that it will have an impact on my children.

- So then, because every moment matters, and I want to keep this moment in the authentic healing that you are living, so the journey that you have walked daily for three years, had you not lived with intentional thought... You know, you were told that you would not see this day and you said... (Rob mimicking scoffing) You did the work to address the death fears, but then, you really started living, and you've now outlived that and you're... And you are... You have no date on you, Quirina.

That... What does that feel like?

- Well, first off, I mean, none of us have a date on us, really, I mean, we can't... - But to be able to release what those doctors said.

- Yeah, I know.

I think that, you know, at the end of the day, we are given this one opportunity to really make the most of this limited and temporary experience, and I won't lie, I mean, I've been afraid, I have turned over to my husband on one occasion where I remember saying, "I think I am dying now," because it just got so bad, but the fear, and the hopelessness, and the helplessness, and the stress, I mean, ultimately, I just remember how low that made me feel, and I just choose the hope, and empowerment, and the gratitude, and just finding the meaning and purpose because it just feels biologically better, and I feel that, you know, at the end of the day, I don't know that any of us... Well, I do know, none of us are making this out alive, right?

I mean, we're all going some way or another, so, you know, at the end of the day, I just... I wanna focus on what matters, I wanna make sure that I've left a mark on my community, that I have told every person I possibly can, that even if we know that this is a speed train that's going to the end faster than everyone else, that there is a way to still enjoy the beauty of the ride, you know, it's not the stimulus that gets us, it's our response to the stimulus, and that, I can control.

My reactions to things have to be curated appropriately for a new life in order for me to find what it is that I'm looking for, and that's just peace.

That means that I can react with stress, and fear, and hopelessness, I can see myself through the lens of being a victim who has been afflicted with a life-threatening illness and that there's no hope, that it's all going downhill, and it's all dark and dreary, or I could say, "What a gift I've received," this gift of actually putting down my case or my City Council packet at a baseball game instead of looking at it in-between moments.

Instead of swatting kids away because there's always something more important to do besides them, besides, you know, looking everywhere else for the most important person in the room, instead looking at the person in front of me and saying, "You matter, how are you?

Are you happy?"

Because at the end of the day, we all have struggles, man.

My struggles are no greater than anyone else's, I just had to get a big struggle to bring me down a little bit, to say, "Hey, girl, you are not omnipotent, and you know what?

If you keep going at the rate you're going, this is all gonna flash, and the next thing you know, you're gonna regret those moments that you weren't still and appreciating every single thing before you," and I'll tell you what, Rob, in the last three years, that's the one thing I would say is the gift of this experience and that is just seeing things with color now.

- Wow.

A new lens.

The truth is our... We're all on a train that's flying out of speed and we have no idea when it's gonna end, none, and the... What I'm hearing from you that really is impacting me in such a huge way is that it's how we live each moment in the in-between, and that no matter when we take off or hit the end of our journey or destination, that it's the dash, it's those moments in the middle that we have to make count, and regardless of our surroundings, that makes our moments better.

You are a shining example of that.

Every moment I've had with you, I have felt, and we've had many because... And I want people to know, like, we... You are my friend, and that doesn't have anything to do with this interview, but you are my friend and I love you tremendously, and every time I leave you, I'm filled up.

How are you filling...?

They say you can't... You know, "Your cup run-eth over," right?

But you really can't fill up someone's cup authentically unless yours is filled.

You must have truly filled yours in these past few years.

- Oh, it's amazing.

You know, honestly, no matter where you sit in this world, I don't have the biggest house, I don't make the most money, I'm not as successful as many of my peers or whatever measure of worth we all use to compare ourselves to others, I'll tell you what, I have it all.

I have it all.

I have a heart that loves and it still beats here today, and I have incredible kids, and I have wonderful people that I've had the great fortune of meeting in this lifetime, and really, at the end of the years, you know, I mean, I've read death books since I've had to prepare for this, right?

And many people will say, you know, these material things we accumulate, they're just temporary measures for others to look at, right?

They're just a quick measure of your worth to others in a moment, but there's always something better, and I don't know, I just... I live with a world... In a world where I see gratitude, I feel gratitude for every little thing, and I know that's sounds so corny, but this is truly a gift to be reduced to a point where you're so mortal and your existence so tempered by external forces that you say, "Well, you know what?

I'm just..." "I'm not gonna be helpless, I'm gonna be hopeful, and I am going to take advantage of every living moment to find something very cool and, you know, sort of fill my cup," I mean, I could have all the same things and look at completely different, I just hope that, you know, we find that empowerment instead of feeling diminished and that, you know, instead of having this... The attitude of, "Why is this happening to me?"

Or, you know, it's, "What is it revealing in me?

What is it that, you know, is helping me rebuild?"

I try to come alive as much as I can, this is the most life I've ever lived because I know that this could end any moment, it's so cool to embrace that feeling, and, you know, regardless of whether or not a doctor any day from now says, "You are healed, you are..." "There's no more cancer," I live my life like there's no cancer, that's my choice, and I know that looks different to people, like, "What is she doing?

Did she make it all up?

Is this not as serious as it is?"

Oh, oh, it is, but you know what?

I could live in the gravity of this Debbie-downer moment and bring everybody around down with me, I could allow folks to put their hand on my shoulder, and lower their eyes and feel pity for me, or I could say, "Look, why don't we hold hands and let's uplift each other because I know damn well you're going through something too."

We all are!

And so, my heart goes out to everyone who has been afflicted by this condition, I've lost friends and I've lost loved ones, and I know there's so many more out there battling and I am here for those folks, I'm here for folks who don't have cancer 'cause quite frankly, like I said, we get this one wild and precious life, and how are we going to maximize it?

Oh, I feel like I, at this point, have cultivated my own little recipe for that.

- But I want you to know that I have all of you in my heart, and you are love, you are light, and you are life in the most beautiful way I have ever seen.

- Thank you.

Thank you, I've received that.

- Good.

Quirina Orozco is the focus of an in-depth story on "Abridged" by PBS KVIE, you can read more at abridged.org, we'll see you next time.

(upbeat rock music) - [Narrator] Thanks for joining us.

You can watch when you want at robontheroad.org.

(upbeat rock music) (upbeat orchestral music) [Narrator] Murphy Austin Adams Schoenfeld LLP, focusing on business law and commercial litigation, is proud to support "Rob on the Road: Region Rising."

More information available at murphyaustin.com.

(upbeat orchestral music)