race day

on friday night i was driving home from livermore and listening to the radio. as i pulled into my driveway, i was moved to tears by a song. i'll come back to that later.

saturday morning was very exciting. i awoke early, ate the recommended peanut butter toast, enjoyed my allotted cup o' joe, took in a decent amount of electrolyte enhanced water, double and triple checked to be sure i had everything that i needed, and then sat on my front porch a few minutes before keri was to pick me up. i sat there as the dark was turning to day and gave it all over to God. those minutes were precious to me and set the tone for the day.


we arrived at quarry lakes regional park (after a few wrong turns which may have been my fault) but thanks to my former oakland police department driver (seriously, read between the lines here) we made it on time, white knuckles and all.

we made our way to the registration table and picked up our race packets. this was a highlight for both of us. since this was our first race, pinning our numbers on was rather fun. getting our race t-shirt held some excitement.

once we were numbered up, we perused the sponsor tents, stretched a little, made a final potty run and then circled around the stage. they made some sponsor announcements, welcomed everyone and then called all of the cancer survivors to the center of the circle. they surrounded these women with a pink ribbon. the mc then went around the circle where each survivor said their name and the amount of time that they have been a survivor. one by one, each woman publicly proclaimed their survival. some of the women were timid, others proud, and others too emotional to speak- they ran the full range from "survivor for two months" to "survivor for 35 years". it was beautiful. the crowd circling them cheered for each woman and celebrated in their fight with this ugly disease. each woman was then handed a white dove.

and on the count, each survivor released their dove. individuals from all ages and walks of life, unified together by the victory that they could claim in fighting this battle and united by the joy that the word "survivor" brings. the doves took flight.

they flew out of each hand separate and then formed together in the sky. they danced for us for a few minutes- flying together in the air to the left and then circling back to the right. it was beautiful and emotional. wind beneath my wings bellowed out of the speakers. it was difficult to keep dry eyes. i thought about my sister and each of these women. i am eager for the day when she gets to declare "survivor".

and then each participant made their way to the start. there were 10k runners, 5k runners, 10k walkers and 5k walkers- teams that participated together and individuals showing their support for cancer survivors alone. the setting was tranquil. the track for 10k runners was two loops around the quarry. mountains burst up from the earth in the background. the sun was bright and warm. keri and i were ready. we took off from the starting pad faster than usual and slowly found our comfortable pace. keeping with our regular pattern, we slowly began a meaningful conversation. we felt good.

as we rounded the quarry to finish the first half of the race, i started to feel the burn. i laughed as i mentioned to keri that i hoped stacy remembered that time she spit on me when we were kids. i was starting to feel the heat of the day and began to doubt if i could go the distance. and then we crested a tiny hill where scott, e, d, and p were cheering for us. it gave me the motivation that i needed to keep going.

and after we passed, d did a little bit of running herself. every night that i run she asks if she can come. it is sweet. i guess she wanted to get her own taste of the race.

a mile into that loop, we started to feel invigorated. we went at a faster pace than we usually do, and kept trying to slow ourselves down a little bit. but it was difficult. the excitement was pressing in and the finish was getting closer. towards the end we were blowing by some other runners and walkers, with the big balloon arch in sight. running across that finish pad felt amazing. knowing that we had raised a pretty penny (to date $1530 and the donations are still rolling in, praise God) for my sister made me euphoric! for those of you that prayed- thank you! those prayers were felt and sustained us through this run. for those of you that "chipped in"- i don't even have words. keri and i running would have been worth nothing if it had not been for the generous support of so many of you beloved friends. i am in awe at your generosity! thank you from the bottom of my heart. being supported in this way and being able to support my sister in this way brings me to my knees with gratitude.

crossing that finish brought back that song that i heard on friday night. it wasn't the first time i heard it, but i'll think of this race and of the support you've shown each and every time i hear it from this point forward (it's playing as you read)...

...but it's all you need. and Love will hold us together, make us a shelter to weather the storm and i'll be my brother's keeper so the whole world will know that we're not alone. it's waiting for you. knocking at your door. in a moment of truth when your heart hits the floor. and your on your knees- and Love will hold us together, make us a shelter to weather the storm and i'll be my brother's keeper so the whole world will know that we're not alone. this is the first day of the rest of your life. this is the first day of the rest of your life. 'cause even in the dark you can still see The Light. it's gonna be alright, it's gonna be alright. Love will hold us together, make us a shelter to weather the storm. and i'll be my brother's keeper so the whole world will know that we're not alone.

i thought about my sister. i can't make this cancer thing go away. i'm not sure that i want to because the beauty that i see it bring- through friends that have made her meals, held her hands when she was low, sat next to her in the chemo chair, loved on her with gifts, conversations, cards and helped with house cleaning... well, that? that's beauty. that's being "your brother's keeper"- stepping in and being Love. none of us can stop the journey, but man, watching people make it a little bit easier? wow! that points me towards heaven.

and then we were greeted by these sweet faces who celebrated with us and cheered on our accomplishment. it was wonderful!

scott took a few pictures- on a side note, selecting the best "sweaty post 10k run picture" to put up on the web for the world to see was an interesting moment. here we are in our full stinky glory. vanity is out the window.

oh, and those hats? well that's a cute story. remember that drive home from livermore on friday night? the one where i heard the song? yeah, i was on my home picking up those hats. i wanted to find a way to "bring my sister to the race". i found a place that could make me some cute hats- problem though. their vinyl printing machine was having some problems. they could have just called and said that they couldn't do it. instead, they offered to bejewel them with another machine. problem with that was that the bejewel machine was having some issues too. when i went to pick up the hats, i discovered two young girls doing them by hand. it was a friday night and i felt really bad. it took them over three hours to hand make these adorable caps that say "the betties". as i stood there watching them finish up, i apologized and thanked them profusely. as it turned out, girl one was cheerful as she knew the abbreviated version of why we needed the hats from my phone order. she shared with me that her grandma and aunt were both survivors. she was sweet and encouraged me in the run. girl two looked a little less thrilled with the way she was spending her friday night. we got to talking and i told her about the race and my sister. after a few minutes i noticed white bracelet on her wrist.

me: does that say "i love boobies"?

girl: YES! my family has had its share of exposure to breast cancer, too. i'm glad i learned your story. it makes me happy to know these are for a good cause.

pause.

girl: is your sister's name betty?

and then i told the gals about "the betties"- about how my sister blogged about her weekly fillings and had coined the name in an effort to talk about her implants tastefully. they both almost fell off of their work stools. they asked for post-race pictures and wanted to know the final amount raised. oh, and as i stood there i noticed that hat's done by hand went for the fee of $30/hour... i was guessing i would just have to pay for it. she rang up my total-

girl: $12 please.

me: what???

i tried to make her charge me more. i didn't want to pay $30/hour but for the love of pete, they had been placing gems by hand all night. but the girl insisted. the hats i had ordered over the phone were $6 a piece and that was all she was going to let me pay. (hey God? thank you!)

i'm headed there this week with some pictures.

oh, and keri, girl! i don't know even know what to say! your friendship is a gift, your support in this has been amazing, and if it weren't for you and you're "can do" heart i am certain that i'd still be sitting on my comfy sofa each night. wanna run on monday?