Saturyday, January 17, 2015
It has been a while since I have blogged. Today, I feel so inspired after spending my morning with such an amazing group of people-my DFMC team. This training season is really gearing up so it is time that I step it up a few notches. I cannot believe I am entering my 4th year as a member of this amazing team and collective effort working towards a world without cancer. I have promised myself that I am going to be better with both my training and blogging this year. The greatest challenge with this is not the actual running or writing; it is finding or making the time for these things. Time seems to always move to quickly and like many I struggle with the increasing challenges of getting in everything within the context of days and weeks that simply seem to be overloaded. It may not be perfect, but I will be better. Today I logged 13.5 miles in 10 degree weather with my teammates some who are first time marathon runners and who are new to the team. Today was a great day!
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| Megan, Kerry (me) and Patrick |
Fundraising Update
I typically
like to begin with a fundraising update. I am a bit slow out of the gate this
year yet I am still pleased to have raised $4,475.
I am still $10,525 away from my goal of $15,000. So many people have jumped
right back in with me for a 4th year and I am so grateful. I couldn’t
do this without you. Each year I have set the audacious goal of raising $15,000
and each year we have exceeded that. Thank you! With you help, I have raised
close to $48,000 and last year our collective team raised over 8 million
dollars. While it is hard to ask year after year, I will continue to do so because
each year I learn of more people that we know and love who are facing this
terrible disease. I also learn of those who are benefitting from the amazing progress
that is being made as a result of the cutting edge research our team raises
funds to support. We can and we must continue to work towards a cure. I hope
you will continue to support me in whatever way you can.
Energy
Most of my blogs
end up as random musing of my thinking about running and my experience with
DFMC. This past week I found myself thinking a lot about energy. Perhaps because
I felt as if mine was depleted. Early in the week I was sick. This made sense.
Who has energy when they are sick? This is somewhat of a challenge especially when
training for a marathon. In addition to physical energy which is required for
running and so many other things, I also feel as if I have been very aware of
the energy that I experience from others and the impact it has on me. In
particular, when I am with the DFMC team and amazing volunteers I feel as if I
have the energy to do what otherwise I may have thought impossible. It is here
that I must admit, I have never taken a Physics class and while science intrigues
me, it is mostly the ideas that emerge that create great pause and wonder for
me. In Physics, energy is a property of objects which is transferable among them via fundamental
interactions and which can be converted into different forms but cannot be created
or destroyed. While this may not have made sense to me before, and my interpretation
may raise the eyebrow of a physicist, I feel like I get it. Well, sort of. The idea that I find most intriguing is the transfer of energy.
When I
arrive on a Saturday for a team run with my DFMC I am fueled by the energy of
so many. “We” becomes so much more than “me.” It is my inspiring teammates who
run in honor and memory of so many. It is the courage and strength of so many
for whom I run who facing this terrible disease. It is the volunteers who brave
the cold because they too have had cancer touch their lives. They are not only
supporting us, but honoring those they love. For some, like my friend Sandy,
they are there to honor those who they have lost. Sandy lost her son Matty and
honors his memory by sharing stories of his bravery and courage each week. I
know for sure that Matty has provided the energy for many of us to get over the
hills that seem insurmountable or at least to make it to his mom’s water stop
which is usually at a greater distance than we want to run. We do it anyway. It
is those like my friend Lauren, who has now volunteered two weeks in a row (in
the cold), who are there because of their connection to Dana Farber. Lauren’s dad
is in treatment at Dana Farber so while she is there for us with water, Gatorade
and snacks, she honors her dad and provides the added inspiration. It is the
energy transferred by so many that makes this all possible.
What does
all this teach me? At the very core my team and my experience with DFMC reminds
me that we have this amazing ability to transfer energy to others. I know this
primarily as the recipient of so much great energy and as someone who feels
responsible for giving back as much as I can. I am also taught by teammates
that the energy we give is often a choice. We can feel powerless to cancer or
we can join forces and fight the good fight. We do this by logging our miles
and sharing our stories. Today I ran my last few miles with my teammate Tom who
is celebrating 20 years cancer free. Like many of us, he is there because he
believes in the amazing work that is being done there. He also shared that he
is literally with us because of the amazing work at Dana Farber. That was all I
needed to get me through my last 3 miles. We experience this energy and are
fueled by others. In turn, we push
ourselves to do more than we think we can whether it be when we are hitting the
pavement or inviting others to join our efforts raising money to fund and to
fuel the innovative work that is being done at Dana Farber with the ultimate
goal-a world without cancer. Will you join me and be part of this amazing
effort? Here is the link to my Fundraising page http://www.runDFMC.org/2015/kerryd
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| Lauren & Sandy-How could we not run to see these amazing friends who brave the cold. |
Kerry D
