Celine Dion is sharing a message of peace and love this Thanksgiving.
The singer, 57, who was diagnosed with stiff-person syndrome in 2022, said in a social media post that the holiday is a beautiful reminder to “slow down, take a deep breath, and give thanks.”
“There’s something so powerful about gathering with the people you love, whether around a full table over the phone or even just in your heart,” she continued. “I’m so thankful to my family and our moments together that mean the world to me.”
She’s no stranger to facing family tragedy.
In 2016, Dion lost her husband René Angélil to throat cancer at 73. The couple share son René-Charles, 24, and twin boys Nelson and Eddy, 15.
Just two days later, Dion’s older brother Daniel Dion, 59, died of brain, throat and tongue cancer.
In 2019, she told PEOPLE that she’d found an inner strength she didn’t know she had since the back-to-back losses.
Celine Dion/Instagram
“To bring my children to understand, ‘Don’t look for dad,’ that made me strong,” she said of the loss of Angélil. “All the little things, and the big things, they have to make you stronger. Otherwise, you don’t understand the meaning of life itself.”
Dion also noted that at the time, she was learning what it was like to be the boss of her own life for the first time.
“All of my life I’ve had so much protection. I’m the 14th child of a family. I had a big army,” she said. “I never had time to think about what I wanted to do with my life. It just happened… Suddenly I’m making all of the decisions.” She added, “I’m the boss now.”
In 2022, Dion faced yet another setback when she was diagnosed with stiff-person syndrome, a rare and incurable neurological disease that can cause debilitating muscle spasms. The condition has left Dion unable to perform as much as she would like to.
Ethan Miller/Getty
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“Unfortunately, these spasms affect every aspect of my daily life,” she said. “Sometimes causing difficulties when I walk and not allowing me to use my vocal cords to sing the way I’m used to.”
But the five-time Grammy winner said that she is not giving up on being able to perform again. “All I know is singing,” she said. “It’s what I’ve done all my life. And it’s what I love to do the most.”
At the end of her Thanksgiving message, Dion added, “May your Thanksgiving be filled with joy, with peace, and with gratitude for everything even the little things. Happy Thanksgiving from me and my family to you and yours.”
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