Relay for Life January 18, 2008

Pop-pop and me back in the day )

2007 Banner

 A sketch my uncle did of my grandfather-we fondly call the fedora a “Pop-pop hat.”

Just putting a little plug in for the race for the cure. I participated and put together a team last year for the American Cancer Society’s 24 hour event. It was a very fulfilling time for me to put a posituve spin on something that feels like a constant negative looming over the heads of various family members and friends. I am proud of our survivors and very deeply miss a lot of people we have lost to this awful widespread disease. My initial true awareness came with my Pop-pop being diagnosed with cancer many years ago (he passed in 1998.) I can still remember the day we found out, sitting in my grandparent’s living room. We knew and he didn’t at that point. Obviously he had been to the Dr. and was waiting for answers. I remember we were talking about it, he came to the top of the steps, leaning on the rail one foot on the top step one on the step below, jingling his change in his pocket as was his habit. We got quiet and a flicker of reckognition that something was wrong came across his face-just a moment I can never forget and I am not sure anyone else noticed it. My heart sank at that moment and from that point on it was a slow painful decline that lasted for over two years. I was praying for his peace at the end-I think we all were. As the years have gone by there have been way too many incidents and death due to cancer that have hit too close to home. So I finally decided it was time to do something-anything. If you are so inclined please donate whatever you can-it helps people that are going through a time with cancer as well as for research for a cure. Here’s my site: Relay for Life it really is a great event and a worthy cause.