Run For the Cure

This post comes after a long time of soul searching. As most people that are reading this know I was diagnosed with breast cancer about 9 months or so ago. I had to have surgery and have more to come later this year but for now I have a clean bill of health. I have spent this year keeping busy, keeping my head buried in the sand thinking that if I don't think about the Cancer I really can pretend it isn't there. And it isn't about not having enough faith in God to keep me safe. There is not a woman out there that doesn't feel that terror in her when she founds a lump and waits for results, or a woman out there that doesn't 100% believe doctors when they say they got it all. After all if that first cell got in their body the first time then it can get in again.

I saw a commercial at the beginning of this year for the Weekend To End Cancer for the Labor Day Weekend but did not want to register for it as we had a grandchild that was due at that time. But the CIBC Run for the Cure is on for October 5th and after spending last couple of weeks thinking about it I realized that I want to do the run. I need to do this run. It would be so easy to continue saying I am fine, I will be fine, I have faith. But I know I need to do MORE, something more.

Anyone that knows my family knows we have been touched by cancer many many times over. The survival rate for cancer isn't the greatest and there is usually a couple of us at any given time dealing with this disease. I have a picture up on my living room wall of my mother, daughter, daughters in law, and 8 granddaughters, plus a now one month old granddaughter who was born after that picture was taken. And I was sitting in the living room just starting at that picture and it became very clear what I needed to do. I needed to raise awareness for this disease. I needed to do something to make my voice heard. I needed to do something to raise money for research. I needed to make sure I did something so the females in this picture would not have to go through this again.

On Friday I watched a show called Stand Up 2 Cancer. The stadium where people were held 60,000 and all seats were taken. The host had everyone stand up, then asked those that either are a survivor of cancer or has someone in their life that is struggling with cancer to sit down. It blew me away. There were few people that were remaining standing. It was celebrities that were doing this show and they pledge a % of their income for the next year to Cancer research. I knew then this had to be done.

I looked at that picture on my wall again and thought of those 13 females that got affected by this disease, that because of me, their chances of inheriting this disease just jumped.It is no longer time to sit with my head in the sand. I will stand up to cancer. I have registered with the CIBC Run for the Cure marathon that will happen October 5th of this year. I have been training for it for the last couple of weeks so that my legs and spine are strengthened.

Please check out this website www.cbcf.org/run/ where you can see where my goal is how I am doing. I am asking for your help if you can. You can either be part of my team and run at the same time in your city (there are cities all over Canada). Pick the one closest to you. If you get registration cost of $40 in by September 19th we can get our team logo on our t-shirts :)

Or you can help by pledging a donation. This you can do by donating in a secure fashion online or I can put it on my pledge sheet. I do guarantee you I will finish this race and I will do it with pride and honour. Please do not feel like you have to donate hundreds of dollars (although I will never refuse that hehehe), anything you can at all will help. Just think if they were just 100 dollars away from finding a cure or a new medication that wasn't chemo or radiation for treatment!! How much better our lives would be without this disease.

I have lost my Father, my only sister, and 4 aunts to cancer. I won't be another one that my family has to watch die. Please visit this site:

www.cbcf.org/en-US/home.aspx

as soon as possible or just email me and let me know you would love to run/walk/ push a baby stroller/join me here in Vancouver or else run with me in the city where you live. When you click on the link it will give you a list of cities that have runs going on at the same time. You can do the 5k or the 1 K run. I would love to have this SMILESONLY team as my team. Together we can make a stand. We CAN stand up to Cancer. You and I. Together.

My Co-workers gave me a necklace when I had my surgery and this is what is engraved on it. I wear this necklace nearly every single day since I received it. It is my mantra and I repeat it every morning when I wake up:

What Cancer Cannot Do:
It cannot....
invade the soul,
suppress memories,
kill friendships,
destroy you,
conquer my spirit,
shatter hope,
cripple love,
corrode Faith,
steal eternal life,
silence courage

And it will not take me away from my family, from my husband, from my 5 sons and my daughter and my daughters in law that I consider as daughters, from my grandchildren, those here now and those yet to come to our family.

This race will be for you. If you at this time of your life can not help out by doing the walk or by monetary donation, I would love to have your prayers and thoughts with us on that day. I have started a journal since I was diagnosed and any emails I have gotten this past year that has words of encouragements in it, I have printed them and put them in my journal. Please know that support is also important to me. Your prayers have gotten me through this past 9 months and continue to get me through this.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart and soul.