May be innocent, may be sweet.. ain't half as nice as rotting meat....
I hate it when i have a bunch of things to talk about, but they are so not in the same context, so i feel like i can't put them in the same post. And i'm just far too lazy to make more then one post.
Relay was amazing. Very emotional. My sister in law's father was the oldest cancer survivor at relay at the age of 86 (we have always called him Grandpa), and the youngest survivor, at the age of 4 1/2 (Sweet little McKenna), was at the tent next to us. They had a really touching ceremony for the survivors and caregivers. The survivors started walking on one side of the track, and the caregivers on the other side of the track with flowers, walking towards each other. They played Melissa Etheridge's "I Run for Life" while everyone walked to the point where we would see the caregivers and the survivors come together. One of the things that the announcer said was so poignant. She said "Those of you caregivers that don't have a survivor of your own, don't worry, we will find one for you." Of course, i had tears streaming down my face. It was heart wrenching to think of the caregivers that worked so hard, and don't have someone to look at and say "See, i worked hard and i got rewarded for my effort." But this event gives those caregivers an opportunity to see others that did get that reward, and most are happy for them.
At about 9 i got to walk with Grandpa down to the stage for the luminaria ceremony. He and McKenna were going to be the first to light their luminarias and then the rest of us would follow. There were several hundred bags all around the track, each bearing the name of a survivor or victim of cancer. I stood and watched as the candles were lit, with more tears. The most amazing part was when the names on all the bags were read out loud. I myself sold 8 of those bags, and all but one of them were people i know personally. My throat closed up as i heard the names of the survivors.. Ann, Kat, Thomas.. the sobbing started when the other names were read.. William, Imogene, Charlotte, Julie, and Josephine. Grandpa hugged me as i cried for those people that i lost, and the people that everyone there had lost. But this night was also about survivors. As i pulled myself together, i looked around at all the people wearing the purple shirts and sashes that said Survivor, and i tried to be positive, knowing that what i was there doing was for those people, and hopefully, the money that we raised would help them, or someone else in their battle with this wretched disease.
So many other things happened in this wonderful 24 hours. It was a long day and night, but i survived, and i feel as though i'm a better person for it. We took fourth place in the money raised out of sixteen teams. First place went to McKenna's family, at over $8k raised. Overall, the entire event surpassed our goal of $35000, by one hundred dollars. Next year we are going to do even better. Yes, we are doing it next year too. Maybe next time i'll actually be clever and not try to go out for hours the night before.Will have some pictures from the lovely
sundesha took pictures, so i will post some of those soon. Thanks Sundesha!
Relay was amazing. Very emotional. My sister in law's father was the oldest cancer survivor at relay at the age of 86 (we have always called him Grandpa), and the youngest survivor, at the age of 4 1/2 (Sweet little McKenna), was at the tent next to us. They had a really touching ceremony for the survivors and caregivers. The survivors started walking on one side of the track, and the caregivers on the other side of the track with flowers, walking towards each other. They played Melissa Etheridge's "I Run for Life" while everyone walked to the point where we would see the caregivers and the survivors come together. One of the things that the announcer said was so poignant. She said "Those of you caregivers that don't have a survivor of your own, don't worry, we will find one for you." Of course, i had tears streaming down my face. It was heart wrenching to think of the caregivers that worked so hard, and don't have someone to look at and say "See, i worked hard and i got rewarded for my effort." But this event gives those caregivers an opportunity to see others that did get that reward, and most are happy for them.
At about 9 i got to walk with Grandpa down to the stage for the luminaria ceremony. He and McKenna were going to be the first to light their luminarias and then the rest of us would follow. There were several hundred bags all around the track, each bearing the name of a survivor or victim of cancer. I stood and watched as the candles were lit, with more tears. The most amazing part was when the names on all the bags were read out loud. I myself sold 8 of those bags, and all but one of them were people i know personally. My throat closed up as i heard the names of the survivors.. Ann, Kat, Thomas.. the sobbing started when the other names were read.. William, Imogene, Charlotte, Julie, and Josephine. Grandpa hugged me as i cried for those people that i lost, and the people that everyone there had lost. But this night was also about survivors. As i pulled myself together, i looked around at all the people wearing the purple shirts and sashes that said Survivor, and i tried to be positive, knowing that what i was there doing was for those people, and hopefully, the money that we raised would help them, or someone else in their battle with this wretched disease.
So many other things happened in this wonderful 24 hours. It was a long day and night, but i survived, and i feel as though i'm a better person for it. We took fourth place in the money raised out of sixteen teams. First place went to McKenna's family, at over $8k raised. Overall, the entire event surpassed our goal of $35000, by one hundred dollars. Next year we are going to do even better. Yes, we are doing it next year too. Maybe next time i'll actually be clever and not try to go out for hours the night before.Will have some pictures from the lovely
sundesha took pictures, so i will post some of those soon. Thanks Sundesha!
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