It's Relay Day!

Tonight is our Relay For Life in Delano. I'm excited, but wishing I had gotten more sleep last night. It's going to be a long day, but the event is so fun, I can't help but look forward to it!! We are selling mini cookies in a cup (and milk) and also having a "decorate the girls" (bra decorating) contest to help raise money. There's also a basket raffle, music, food, games and just about anything you could hope for! It's very entertaining and lots of fun. The weather is threatening rain/storms after 11:00 PM tonight, so please please please pray that we don't get it!!

This year is very important to me. First of all, I am in so much better shape that I can actually WALK the path a few times tonight. Haven't been able to do that in the past. Secondly, I just recently lost my friend Linda to breast and lung cancer, and my friend Connie just lost her sister Grace to a recurrence of breast cancer on Wednesday. I also learned that my Uncle Wayne died on Monday after a battle with stomach cancer. I will think about them and their struggles as I walk and know that my minor discomfort is nothing compared to what they went through. And finally, my sister Sandy is continuing her battle against breast cancer (Round 2). She's going through some difficult times right now, having her lungs drained of fluid almost weekly. She feels like giving up the fight, so I am also walking in her honor and know that my few steps are just baby steps when put up against all the steps she has been through. I don't want her to give up her fight..so I hope we can all provide some hope to her. She inspires me with her strength every day, I want to inspire her in some small way with this walk.

Tomorrow I'll visit my friend Terry in Litchfield (a stone's throw from Delano) as friends gather to celebrate him beating the 6 months they gave him back in January when he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Since then, he's gone on a trip to Paris and has a trip to Egypt planned for next month. He's not letting this beast stop him from living. In fact, on July 19 (his 6 month date), he rode his bike to his grave site and laid down and reflected! Creepy, but that's Terry!

It's been an emotional few weeks and tonight will no doubt stir up some emotions as I think of all those I know who have cancer or who have lost their battle. I hate cancer and hope that some day future generations will talk about it in the past tense.