Happy New Year! Today was the second official Dana Farber Team run which means we are now 14 weeks away from the Boston Marathon. Yikes! As part of my marathon training and fundraising, I also aim to keep a weekly blog during the 18 weeks of training. This gives me the opportunity to document and share my journey with friends, family and supporters. Well, here I am at the end of week 4 and I missed week 2 and week 3. This is not such a great start. I could blame the craziness of the end of the semester and the holidays and that certainly played a part. However, to be quite honest, this year I have simply not been able to find my rhythm (disclaimer: this does not mean that I will not find it).
As the official training season began I developed bronchitis which can be challenging with my asthma. However, I tend to see the glass half full so I saw this as a blessing that it happened at the beginning of the season when there is plenty of wiggle room for catching up on the miles. Certainly there are lots of people who deal with a lot more difficult things that labored breathing. Well, like many who have been sick this season, I am still coughing and being challenged by it. Running has become one of my greatest teachers. Today I was reminded that many times when we cannot find our rhythm we can choose to start again. Before I share my thoughts on my “ah ha” moment of today’s run, let me give you a fundraising update because after all, this is the reason I am logging the miles and once again running the Boston Marathon- to raise funds to support cancer research and Dana Farber’s Ultimate goal: a world without cancer.
Fundraising Update
As of today, my fundraising page reflects that $5,386.20 has already been donated. THANK YOU! I cannot begin to express my incredible gratitude for the many friends, family member and colleagues who have stepped up and made donations for the second year in a row to support me and my teammates in this incredibly important effort. My goal this year is to raise at least $10,000. Last year with all of your support I raised over $15,000. Some might ask why my initial goal is lower than last year. Well, last year my initial goal was actually $7,000. I am someone who likes to under promise and over deliver. While I believe it is completely possible to exceed my goal as we did last year, I want to be cautiously optimistic. So if you have donated already, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. You are once again part of this incredible effort that is working toward a world without cancer. If you have not donated yet, I ask you to please consider making a donation. It does not matter how big or how small, collectively our donations add up and make a very powerful push toward a world without cancer. If you are unable to make a donation, you can support with words of encouragement. Every bit helps. So thank you to all of you who are here for year two! We have 14 weeks to go. I cannot do this without your support.
New Beginnings
Ok, let’s get back to the “ah ha” moment about new beginnings. Running truly has become one of my greatest teachers and the amazing thing is that while I know this to be true, her lessons always take me by surprise. I had shared that I have not yet seemed to find my rhythm this training season. Like many, I have been sick and struggling to get back to 100%. The holidays came and were filled with great times with family and friends. For me, this included a trip to Colorado
So I arrived at today’s run both excited and nervous. My breathing continues to be labored especially when I run. However, something magical happens when running with the Dana Farber Team. I remember why I am running and am surrounded by so many amazing people that the labored breathing is simply a sign to slow the pace. It is not about going fast. It is about moving forward with a purpose. The team met today at the Mount Auburn Club in Watertown
The team was off. We started to make our way over to the Boston Marathon course through Brighton for our training run. My “ah ha” moment or lesson for today came at mile 2. This was not very far into the 12 mile run and certainly not what I would have expected to happen. My breathing was labored but it was cold. I figured if we found the right pace and as I adjusted to the cold, I would be fine. Then we started our way up the first hill good size hill. The dry heaves started. I had hoped it would pass. However, they did not. I found myself on the side of the road throwing up. This is perhaps more details than I should share, however it is very relevant to the lesson. I was running with my good friend Elaine. She was so patient and asked if I was alright. As other teammates passed they all asked if I was ok too. Lovely, I thought to myself. It is only the second run and I am getting sick maybe at mile two. “I am a hot mess,” I thought. Then after a few minutes, I felt better.
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| Jack Fultz (our coach), me, Steve and Elaine at mile 6 |
Elaine and I started to run again. It was then I decided that the run was starting over. I was not going to think about how terrible it is to get sick at mile two or worry that because I got sick that I would not be able to continue. Instead, I simply changed my thinking to “the run starts now.” It was not the greatest run I have had, but it was wonderful to be running with a high school friend. In my head I reminded myself I was not only training for a marathon. I was part of an effort working toward a world without cancer.
Lesson from Team Run # 2
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| Steve, Kerry and Elaine: Miles Logged! |
I was not thrilled to have gotten sick today. However, shortly after I did feel much better. My breathing was still labored a bit, but I was reminded that in any given moment we can shift our energy and begin again. Most often we cannot control our environment or what happens but we can control how we respond to it. As I drove home from the team run, I no longer felt bad that I had not yet found my rhythm this training season or that I have missed two weeks of blog posts. Just like today at mile two I decided that the run began from that point, I too can choose to focus my energy on creating my rhythm rather lamenting about not having found it yet. Perhaps I found it today. I am looking forward to week 5 of training. Bring it on!
I want to end by sharing a video. Many of you may have already seen this. It was shared by a number of my friends on Facebook and is an incredible story of the power of possibility. My favorite quote from the video is “just because I cannot do it today, does not mean I will not be able to do it tomorrow.” These words resonated with me today as I tackled the hills in Newton, MA. For some of us it is building up the endurance to run a marathon. For some of us it is also trying to imagine reaching our fundraising goal. For all of us it is dreaming a world without cancer. Just because we cannot do it today, does not mean that we won’t be able to do it tomorrow. One step at a time and one dollar at a time anything is possible if we are willing to work towards our goals with laser like focus.
Let's work hard today for a better tomorrow. Are you with me?
With Gratitude,
With Gratitude,
Kerry D
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