Leavenworth Marathon Relay

This past weekend was our annual team relay, the Leavenworth Oktoberfest Marathon. First thing in the morning, our carpool of racers dropped off Michelle and I to pick up the packet, and get her to the starting point (she was the first leg of the race). Walking through the madness, I ran into Steve, the editor from the Wenatchee World who wrote a pretty amazing article about me (which I feel was too nice). It was wonderful to see him, and I gave him a huge hug. He instantly said, "Hey, have you met Ted's wife Lynda?" I shook her hand, and almost stopped breathing. I was so honored to meet her. It was a simple, quick greeting, and we were both on our way. That chance meeting set the tone for the entire race for me. 

Side note: Ted Finegold and a buddy started the Leavenworth Marathon and Wenatchee Marathon. He was also an attorney that worked with my girlfriends here in Wenatchee, and a close family friend of another of my girlfriends. He passed away this summer after losing his battle with cancer. Everyone I know from Wenatchee has at least one story about how amazing Ted was. Even though I wasn't lucky enough to have met him, I've definitely been inspired by him. Here's a wonderful article about Ted to know more about who he was.

Last year, during the relay, our group was a wild tornado of adrenaline and debauchery. I think costumes have a way of doing that to a person. This year, my life is completely different. As I was running the second leg of the race, looking around at the "Ted" shirts, was overwhelming. Before I knew it, I was crying as I ran. I couldn't help it.  

I was incredibly touched by a man who had impacted hundreds, even thousands of people. He was young, only 43. He had a family, two children, and an absolutely gorgeous wife (from what I hear she's beautiful in personality too). The t-shirts that my friends were wearing said, "I run for Ted," and as I saw another shirt along the trail, I thought, "You know what Ted, you don't know me, but I'm running for you too. And your wife. And your children." Then I started to cry again.

There are people who don't even know that they're impacting the lives of others. I've ran in six of Ted's races, and at the time, I had no idea who he was. I'll never forget how powerful life is, and how powerful his life was. I'm incredibly grateful for Ted's life. His story is an inspiration to me. 

After running my leg of the race, I was standing with a group of friends cheering on the runners. I happened to look over, and see Lynda walking away hand-in-hand with her child; it absolutely broke my heart. In fact, it made me start crying again. I wish there was no such thing as loss. I wish that people didn't disappear so soon. I can't even fathom how hard that would be.

 

Operation Grab-A-Stein

My Wenatchee Girls

Curse The Memo

Danny and I just returned from back-to-back doctor's appointments in Seattle. The first appointment was speech therapy, and the second was my first visit at the psychologist's office (who deals with terminal illnesses).

In the first hour, during speech, I read aloud a one page explanation of a workplace. Afterward, my task was to write a memo to my hypothetical boss describing the problems, and providing solutions. When my therapist, Julie, asked me to write the memo I completely drew a blank. I didn't know what to say, I couldn't remember the points, I couldn't form an introduction sentence. I didn't even know what the problems were. A thousand words of gibberish swirled through my mind, and I felt my face get red. I stared at the page, and tried to focus. Before I knew it I was crying. I couldn't stop myself. I couldn't process the information. The thing is, she gave me ample time to quietly figure out, but as the silence grew, and I knew I didn't have any answers, my heart broke.

I used to be excellent at reading comprehension. I was one of two (or maybe it was three) students who received an A in my Texas Christian University freshman composition course (the standard English class - a prerequisite). I'm not saying that I was a suburb student. In fact, I was an A/B student. That's why that grade was so important, it was a serious accomplishment. Now, being that I'm unable to process and organize information I'm humbled, and disappointed. It's incredibly painful.

For some reason I'm able to write how I feel, what I'm thinking, and things that are happening in my day to day life. I write how I think, and it's organic. I can't seem to organize thoughts to support an argument, or opinion. That's my homework for this week. Julie asked me to find something that I have an opinion about. I'm then supposed to explain my opinion, and use supporting reasons as to why I hold the opinion. It sounds easy enough, but on the three hour ride home I still couldn't think of anything. Oh well. Maybe it'll come to me.

As for the psychologists office, no crying there! It was a basic session, and I really like her. I have a feeling she'll help me process some of the things going on in my life. We actually laughed a lot, which was nice. I don't meet with her again until the day after the MRI. So, I'll be full of emotion, either excitement and happiness or fear and anxiety. Either way I'm sure the meeting will be helpful.

Here's my photo of the day. I like to grocery shop while I go to the doctor's office. I'm a huge fan of Trader Joe's, and Wenatchee doesn't have one. I always load up on the good stuff, and today I spotted a new treat. I've heard that sea vegetables are incredibly good for your brain. Unfortunately, this snack leaves you with bad breath and green flecks in your teeth. And it's not exactly delicious. But I ate it. Because it's good for me. If I sound like I'm complaining, it's because I am. It's pretty gross. The things I do for my brain.