Current mood: intense
As many of you know, my mom is currently undergoing treatment for Lymphoma(cancer of the lymph nodes). When mom first had this disease years ago, she began participating in the Cancer Society's "Relay for Life". She does it every year. My sister began doing the relay a few years ago and this year I joined the family tradition. These "relays" are held all over the country on different dates. You get a team together and you camp out at a high school usually(because they have a track). One member from each team MUST be on the track walking or running at all times. The event lasts from 6:00pm on a Friday till 6:00am Saturday morning. It is an all night event to remind us that, since cancer never sleeps..then neither will we in our quest to find a cure or raise money for research.
Each team has a tent or canopy set up on the football field and they sell things or food or back massages or mile marker necklaces and beads and at the end of the night(usually 2 am) all the money is turned in and counted.
When my sister asked me to join her team I admit...I agreed reluctantly. I mean, who wants to work all week..and then go to some "charity thing" and spend all night? I sure didn't. However, on Friday night, I showed up, wearing my obscenely bright red and black Asics, and eager to "get this thing over with." During the opening ceremonies they had something called the "survivor's lap". All the survivor's( in purple shirts) came to the stage...stated their names, what type of cancer they had, and how long they had been "survivors". Listening to their stories and seeing their bravery, it hooked me. I was in. This was bigger than me and my petty inconvenience. This was for mom,Grandpa(deceased, bone cancer), Aunt Dorothy(deceased, pancreatic and liver cancer), and Aunt Maxine(deceased, breast cancer).
Throughout the night they had activities and ceremonies planned to keep everyone's spirits up and keep everyone awake. I started out with a bang...and did a mile on that track. Our team consisted of about 8 people. There were times when only one of us was on the track..and there were times when 4 of us were on the track. I banged out the first two miles in pretty quick order. A survivor was selling "mile marker" necklaces. It was a plastic necklace that you string different colored beads on. You chose a color for your beads..and every 4th bead was your mile marker and it was a different color.
At midnight they had a Luminaria ceremony. A luminaria is a white bag with a small candle mounted in a block of wood in the bottom. The luminaria were sold for 1.00 a piece, you would buy one in memory of someone who had passed or in honor of someone who was fighting. They lit the luminarias and lined the track and the visitor bleachers with them. at 12:31 they lit them all and shut off all the lights. It was beautiful. They read the names of every person on every luminaria.
I had been slowing down on my laps and my legs hurt and my feet hurt and then I started hearing all those names and I was walking around that dark track and the tears flowed down my face and I kept walking. I saw people in purple survivor shirts walking that track with canes and walkers and in wheelchairs and I kept walking. I saw women wearing bandanas on their heads to cover their baldness from the chemotherapy, and I kept walking.
The tears flowed and I kept walking. By the end of the experience...I had walked about 7 miles...eaten 1 funnelcake, had some nachos, gained four blisters, and had an experience that brought me a little perspective on what was REALLY important in life.
I talked to my daughter last night..she had to work friday night, but she's going to do the relay with me next year. I encourage everyone to get out there and if you don't want to walk, please find a "RELAY FOR LIFE" team and give generously. If you have the ability to walk. DO IT. It can change your life or someone else's.
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