Stepping Towards a Cure
It feels as if I’ve done this before.
It feels like I’ve been to this site, updated this page, searched for some neat and interesting photos to accompany whatever words I might find to incorporate into these paragraphs.
I feel I’ve done it all before. But this time, it is different.
In the past, I’ve written about my cozy comfort zone:
co·zy –
: small, comfortable, and warm
: friendly and pleasant
Indeed, that is what I’ve found inside the ‘zone for most of my years.
I’ve been fortunate in my most recent travels outside the cozy place. I’ve accomplished things not even on my radar before taking those first steps. I’ve met people who will hold a special place in my heart for years to come. Some of them merely chance acquaintances with whom I may never again have contact. Some, I am proud to call friends.
Several years ago, those travels began with the assistance of Team in Training (TNT).
I am once again joining forces with TNT and with the help and support of the coaches, mentors, captains and friends, I will be working towards the goal of finishing my first half marathon, and I will do so in honor of all individuals who are now fighting or have ever fought blood cancers.
These people are the real heroes on our team.
In the last two years and with TNT, I’ve completed training for America’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride – a bicycle ride that took me 100 miles around Lake Tahoe in both 2012 and 2013. Also in 2013, I worked with TNT to complete my very first triathlon.
One of my favorite quotes heard recently has been, “I would love to do a triathlon as long as I can find one that doesn’t include swimming or running.”
It is as if they read the thoughts in my mind as I was training for the Triathlon at Pacific Grove. Swimming and running, I found, were not for me. I worked through it during the training sessions, though, and I kept going back for more.
Then I crossed the finish line after swimming, riding and running and found myself uttering with whatever breath remained, “What’s next?”
Herein lays the answer. What non-runner WOULDN’T want to attempt a half marathon?
Unlike the triathlon, where I felt I may excel in the cycle stage to help make up for what I was surely going to lack in the swimming and running stages, the half marathon consists of ONLY one component:
Running.
(Well, let’s go ahead and be honest here. My component will include walking.)
The point is, I won’t have a ‘strength’ to hide behind for this event. I won’t have any place to ‘make up’ time as I go. It is just me and my legs, lungs and mind.
And that is okay. Really. It is. Because this is all about more than just me and what my legs, lungs and mind can handle throughout my training and up to and past the event, itself.
It is about funding a cure.
We are close to finding a cure for blood cancers and, consequently, a cure for all forms of cancer. You can help make that belief a reality.
Here’s how you can make a difference:
Join me in my efforts to fight these terrible diseases by making a donation in support of my endeavor with Team in Training.
Every one of us has the opportunity to have an impact. Give all you can and know you are changing lives. Take comfort in knowing 78% of every dollar given goes directly to the Society’s mission in our area and 100% of your donation is tax deductible.
The Mission of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS):
Cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families. LLS is the world’s largest voluntary health agency dedicated to blood cancer. LLS funds lifesaving blood cancer research around the world and provides free information and support services.
The Short Term Goals for LLS:
Each year, LLS moves closer to their goal of finding a cure for blood cancer. This year to support their mission, they’ll be focusing on these specific goals:
Continue to fund blood cancer research projects that offer the best chance of accelerating development of new, promising treatment therapies
- Give more people with blood cancer access to clinical trials
- Give all people with blood cancer – at every stage of their journey – access to the information and services they need to fight and manage their disease
“I can. Therefore, I will.”
~ Abbey