Fighting Back

A picture of my team at Relay for Life.

This weekend I participated in Relay for Life. I love everything about Relay. My team was awesome, the cause is amazing and you share a connection with everyone there, whether you know someone or are someone who has suffered from cancer. I have never personally known anyone who has had cancer and I'm extremely grateful for that but I still walk because I know that if I had cancer or knew someone who had cancer, I would want someone walking for me or my family.

My favorite part has always been the luminary ceremony for the poems and the songs dedicated to survivors and fighters of cancer. This year though, I had a whole new experience that opened my eyes to how amazing Relay is for not only me but why it is special to each person. An event that literally changed my whole view of Relay. That made it that much more amazing.

I met a man this weekend who started running around the track at 11PM. I was talking to my friend about him because she runs marathons with him. She told me he was running not for training but for his parents. Both of his parents had been diagnosed with cancer and he said this was his way of "fighting back". I literally started balling. Putting myself in his shoes, he was truly inspirational. To have both of your parents suffer from something so huge, something that can make or break a family; his strength amazed me. I started telling all my friends about what his plan was. He wanted to run until 6AM. Everyone on my team was amazed by this guy.

And then 1:55AM rolled around. You could see the pain in his face from all the running. He'd been trying to stay hydrated and eating but he was sore. I couldn't believe it when he stopped running at 2AM. I froze. You could see the disappointment when he came to a stop but there is only so far we can push our bodies. He had run so far and so long. 

That's when my friends and I decided that we wanted to walk laps with him. At least one. Just to talk to him, to hear his story, to let him know that we are walking because of people like his parents. To let him know that he isn't alone in this battle.

And so we walked.