My sister Sharlie emailed me an invitation to join her in a virtual race. Sharlie has CF (cystic fibrosis), a genetic, degenerative disease that affects the lungs and the digestive system. She is running this virtual race to raise money for CF and I am asking you to join her, and me, on Sunday March 20th to raise money, and awareness for CF.
Sharlie lives with one lung, a lung that currently functions at 18% of the capacity of a normal, healthy lung. Sharlie runs nearly every day. She gets on the treadmill, connects a breathing tube to her portable oxygen tank and runs. If you saw her pace you may argue that she's not running, not even jogging, but when I think of her on that treadmill, struggling for her next breath, knowing that the more she struggles the stronger she gets, it makes any PR I have set or any distance I have gone seem trivial. To me, she is flying.
As I have written here before, one of the reasons I run is to feel the pain of breathing hard, and to never take my breath for granted. The difference between me and my sister, my niece, and my nephew, who all live with CF, is that when I am finished, I can forget about my breath, letting it go back to automatic...easy in, easy out; but for them, breathing is a struggle, a process that is always at the forefront of their lives.
So, I am asking you to join us. It's an inexpensive race ($20), you choose the distance, you can walk or run, and you even get a t-shirt. I'll be running to honor my sister Sharlie, my niece Lauren, my nephew Ben, and I will be running in memory of my sister, Lexi. I will choose a hard course, one that forces me to breathe short, hard breaths, and with each breath and each footfall I will be grateful.
You can register here.
Please share this opportunity with friends and family.
Thank you for joining us.
Sharlie lives with one lung, a lung that currently functions at 18% of the capacity of a normal, healthy lung. Sharlie runs nearly every day. She gets on the treadmill, connects a breathing tube to her portable oxygen tank and runs. If you saw her pace you may argue that she's not running, not even jogging, but when I think of her on that treadmill, struggling for her next breath, knowing that the more she struggles the stronger she gets, it makes any PR I have set or any distance I have gone seem trivial. To me, she is flying.
As I have written here before, one of the reasons I run is to feel the pain of breathing hard, and to never take my breath for granted. The difference between me and my sister, my niece, and my nephew, who all live with CF, is that when I am finished, I can forget about my breath, letting it go back to automatic...easy in, easy out; but for them, breathing is a struggle, a process that is always at the forefront of their lives.
So, I am asking you to join us. It's an inexpensive race ($20), you choose the distance, you can walk or run, and you even get a t-shirt. I'll be running to honor my sister Sharlie, my niece Lauren, my nephew Ben, and I will be running in memory of my sister, Lexi. I will choose a hard course, one that forces me to breathe short, hard breaths, and with each breath and each footfall I will be grateful.
You can register here.
Please share this opportunity with friends and family.
Thank you for joining us.
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| Me and my sister |
From one Tough Mudder to another, thanks for supporting CF.
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