Hooray for Relay!
I had the privilege to participate in Hall County’s Relay for Life this past weekend. It was absolutely incredible! I have been looking forward to Relay for many, many months. At school we raised almost $3,000 and I personally, through the very generous help of many of you, raised $950! I have been so excited. But, I have to tell you…well, actually I don’t have to tell you, but I’m going to anyway. Friday came and I was not the least bit excited about going to the event.
Can you believe that?! Something that I had planned for, raised money for, and even looked forward to for MONTHS and I didn’t even want to go. See lately, I have had a rough time emotionally. I know it sounds really weird. One would think that the rough emotional time would be during diagnosis and treatment. Granted, that was hard. But the hardest time I’ve had emotionally has been since my treatments ended.
Apparently, this is not uncommon. I get an e-news email from an organization called Cancer Care and one of the topics on it this time was My Treatment is Over: Why Do I Feel So Alone and Sad? So, I must not be the only one experiencing this type of thing. I think I’ve written a little about this in a previous post, but since it’s late and I’m lazy I’m not going to read back through and find it to link it right now. I just haven’t gotten very fancy on my blog. Boy, I tell you what, there are some really, really fancy blogs out there! Lately, I’ve just spent time reading blogs and not writing on mine. It gets intimidating when you read some of the fancy blogs with fancy writers. Ok…I’m off topic…back to my plain, boring blog.
I spent Friday either yelling at the kids or crying. Then I managed to gather my emotions long enough to pack up a few things and head out with the kids still not really wanting to go. Seth met us there since he had to work that day and I was all rude and emotional with him too. Thank the Lord I have a very kind husband who stuck it out with me and by the time we got to the track, I was settling down a bit. As we approached the track around 5:30 that evening, it was packed! The walking doesn’t even officially start until 7:00 pm and already you could hardly even manuever around the lanes. It was incredible!
If you’ve never been to a Relay for Life, let me explain. People (i.e. companies, schools, businesses, etc) form teams and set up tents for the night around the track. They sell all kinds of stuff or have face painting, games, etc. Any money raised goes for their team for Relay. I’d like to know how much the funnel cake booth made! The line for it was SO long and stays that way until they close about midnight. Anyway, there is also a stage set up about mid-track and there is something going on all night long on that stage. They have all kinds of contests and entertainment going on to keep everyone motivated during the night. I’ll find my book and put an explanation on here as to why they do this all night long, but tonight it’s still too late and I’m still too lazy.
So, to make a long story even longer…we went to the concession stand and I got my survivor t-shirt and “dinner” catered by Outback. They used to do an actual dinner, but this year did what they called a reception and it was more like getting a sack lunch. It was still nice. We got settled in at the Gainesville City Schools tent and some of my family arrived. Dad, Mom, Kristin, Kyla, Poppie, and our friend, Ethel, were all there. We also got to meet up with our good friends Paul and Cindy. Then as we were walking around I kept running into people that I knew from many years ago. It was really neat.
Around 6:45 pm, they begin gathering all the survivors at the beginning of the track. What an emotional experience! There was a sea of purple as almost 700 survivors gathered together to walk the first official lap of Relay. I had the privilege of talking with the mother of one of my nurses while I was waiting and it was comforting to know that she, too, had experienced many of the emotional ups and downs that I had. As the lap started I had to pull away from her and get to the outside so that when I got around the track I could see my family. It was incredible experience to be there to walk that lap. People are lined up all around the track clapping and cheering and smiling and it was all I could do to hold my tears back. However, I still felt a little alone because even though all these people were cheering, I didn’t know them and I wasn’t going to see my family until the other side of the track. Then above all the clapping and cheering I hear someone shouting my name – my name! I looked around and saw a friend from work waving her hands and smiling. She was cheering for me! That was when I almost lost it and I couldn’t hold my tears back anymore. A few more steps around the track and there was another friend shouting and then another. I was overwhelmed! Then I finally made it around to my family. Seeing all their faces was, well, indescribable. The second lap around is for caregivers and they were all able to walk that lap as well.
I managed to stay until about 1:30 am and then had to pack it up and call it a night. But, next year, I’m staying all night and I’ve had several people tell me they want to stay all night too. It really is a great event and this years’ event raised over $500,000 for the American Cancer Society.
Thank you again to those of you who supported me this year in raising money for Relay. Thank you to those of you who came to Relay and walked for our team. Thank you also to all of you who have faithfully prayed for me, sent me gifts, provided meals, transportation for my children, or even kept my children. What acts of love and service and I am forever grateful! And, I’m very glad I went to Relay this year!!!
Cindy Martin said,
June 5th, 2008 at 7:20 am
God bless you. I love you beyond words or measure. You’re still in my prayers.
Cindy
Jen Jen said,
June 5th, 2008 at 5:16 pm
Okay, I am wiping tears from my eyes! I am glad you went too! And especially that you were a participant in the SURVIVOR lap!! I can tell you the depression from my open heart surgery hit me months after the event itself. I think it is so overwhelming when you go through it that your emotions only catch up later. Praying for you and know this is very normal indeed, Jen Jen
Lynda Barkley said,
June 6th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
I have made new friends Andy & Kellie Coburn!! We are so excite to have them at New Albany ARP Church, New Albany, MS. They and their girls are a GOD send. In talking with Kellie one day I told her that I had a colon cancer diagnosis Sept. 2006, ( my only son’s senior year in high school), had 8 inches removed and went through chemo. Feb. 2008 (my son’s second semester as a college freshman) I was diagnosed with metastatic colon cancer with a tumor on each adrenal gland and a lesion on my left shoulder blade, how weird is that? Kellie told me about her friend in GA. that had colon cancer and suggested I check out your blog. We seem to have this in common. I am on an aggressive chemo regime and will be on some dosage of chemo for the rest of my life. I can tell you that I know exactly how you feel. The emotions, the need to feel normal and have a normal life for your family. These are difficult things and take a lot of energy (that we don’t have). I had scans run this past Monday-the tumors have not grown! If you were to see me you would think, there is nothing wrong with me. I look normal (never really was normal in the first place HA), and I feel normal. It is funny when people that know my condition see me and say “Well, you don’t LOOK sick.” I find myself apologizing to them, “Sorry to disappoint you” I say. And then I tell them that you never know what someone is walking around with in their body or in their heart. Sorry to ramble. I just wanted to introduce myself to you and to tell you that you and your family are on my prayer list.