Relay for Life

2 years ago I didn't really know anyone that had cancer. Then a good friend of my mom's was diagnosed with leukemia. Lynette wrote a blog about her experiences and I followed it, learning about the personal side of cancer and crying when she died.

Last year, my cousin was diagnosed with leukemia. Krishana had been trying to become a missionary for several years and I had been supporting her, but the diagnosis and her moving home drew us closer. I was able to be there for her first run after being cleared by her oncologist. She was declared to be in remission and in February, moved to Austria for full-time mission work.

In March I got a call from Amy that a friend of ours from TaeKwonDo had been diagnosed with a brain tumor. Sue hadn't been having symptoms for very long, but she was told it was a fast growing cancer and she probably only had 6 months to a year to live. She actually died about 2 weeks after the diagnosis.

Because of these wonderful, inspiring women I choose to participate in Relay for Life this year. I love the American Cancer Society's "More Birthdays"  slogan. A world with more birthdays seems like a great place to me. I don't want anyone else I know to lose birthdays because of cancer. I'm not really big into fund-raising, but I put a link on my facebook page and asked my parents to donate. I raised $235 and I'm very happy to be contributing in a small way to a world with more birthdays.

MiniMarathon #2

This year I completed my second Kentucky Derby Festival MiniMarathon. I finished 30 minutes faster than last year in 2:49:49. I like to joke I went from really slow to just slow. I'm actually pretty happy with that time, but I think that might be my last half-marathon.  In this past year, I feel I've become a runner, but I don't enjoy long training runs. 5 miles felt good, 8 miles felt ok, and 10 miles was no fun. I'm signed up for the Rock and Roll Miami Half-Marathon in December, but I'm not sure I want to participate. I signed up on a whim because it was on sale and a little bit to show the ex I didn't need him to keep running. That realization combined with my dislike of long training runs and the fact that it's the weekend before finals makes me want to skip it. So we'll see. I've done 3 half-marathons now and that might be where I stop. I'm glad I don't have to decide today.