Kick-Off

Wednesday night was the official kick-off for the fall season events for Team in Training. Was privileged to be asked to speak for ten minutes or so, as one of the program's honored teammates. I've been working on a short speech over the past two weeks, mostly at the informational events I'd been attending, but I wanted this one to be a little different. Part of the goal, obviously, is to share my story. I felt like I'd been doing pretty much a straight chronology: here is what happened. Here is what happened next. It was bad. And then it wasn't.

I tried to talk more about the parallels between endurance events and my experience with chemo. That while you ultimately own your treatment, you don't get through it alone. You need the help and love and support of many, many people along the way. That you should know, going into it, that there will be good days and bad days. Sometimes lots of bad days in a row. And it's how you choose to respond to those bad days that define the quality of your character.

I feel like I always forget something when I do one of these speeches. Didn't matter, though. I was surprised when I'd finished speaking and the assembled participants in the room -- maybe a hundred people? -- stood and clapped for me. Never received a standing ovation for anything before. Very, very humbling.