Remembering Laiken

Laiken's Mother Stacey posted this picture on Facebook this morning.  As she does each year she creates an event where people can do something to "Pay it Forward" in honor of Laiken's life.

I never met Laiken while she was living.  I know Laiken through Stacey's words, through the love she has for her daughter.

Seven years later Laiken's legacy lives on as hundreds of people will do something today to create a ripple effect of kindness and love.

Smile on pretty girl. 

Light and Love x 13 x Forever

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We are Columbine

It is sixteen years now since the school shooting at Columbine High School on April 20, 1999.

There was very little in the news and on social media sites.  Channel 9 news posted this on their site today and I thought it was perfect, quiet, dignified.  No mention of the two gunmen. 

With love, remembering all that we lost and all that was lost on that day in spring sixteen years ago. 

Cassie Bernall, Stephen Curnow, Corey DePooter, 
Kelly Fleming, Matt Kechter, Daniel Mauser, Daniel Rohrbough.
Coach Dave Sanders, Rachel Scott, Isiah Shoels,
 Lauren Townsend, John Tomlin, Kyle Velasquez

We are Columbine. 

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Rocky

We had to take our poodle Rocky to the Vet this morning.  It was time to say goodbye and let him run free again with no pain in his legs.

Rocky came to live with us on November 11, 2001.  He was a show dog at heart.  We never showed him, but he had it in him.  Whenever he was out on a walk, and a person would approach he would change his gait and proudly began to prance.  He could be a ham.

He had such a sweet disposition.  He was a happy go lucky and at times a very ungraceful dog.  He could be quite athletic in one moment and then mistime his jump and end up doing a face plant.

Laura and Adam grew up from the teenage and pre teen years with Rocky.  This morning we all went together as a family to the vet.

We stayed with him the whole time during the procedure, never leaving his side.  It seemed to be the least we could do for him.

When Laura went out of state for her Freshman year in College, it really hit Rocky hard.  Every time when Laura would come home from college for a break, he was her shadow.  He would lay on her lap and lick her obsessively.  Even in this last year whenever she would come over to the house for a visit he would still perk up.

Rocky would wait up for Adam to come home from his radio gig at Mile High Sports or from a late night of working out at the gym and happily trundle downstairs to Adam's room.

I think Rocky was more Laura's and Adam's pet then he was ours.  How he loved his kids.

Rocky loved taking Adam to school in the morning, and loved it even more when he got to pick him up after school.  Rocky would always cry in the morning when Adam would get out of the car.

Rocky loved going to the Furry Scurry in May.  We have many happy memories of Rocky as he would make many new "friends" during the annual two mile walk.

Rocky takes on the obstacle course at the 2008 Furry Scurry

Rocky loved the first snow of every year and would happily bound into the snow.

It was so hard to have to say goodbye to Rocky.  I shed many tears last night and I know that are more tears to shed.  I am okay with that.  I love Rocky and that love doesn't stop with his passing.

I am so grateful for the thirteen years that we were blessed to have Rocky share his life and love with us.

Go chase those bunnies now!  I love you Rocky!!!

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Thirty One Years

Sue and I got married thirty one years ago.  That is a crap ton of years as Sue likes to say.

We flew to San Francisco for our honeymoon.  Sue's brother Rick drove us to the airport and offered to buy us a drink, but he didn't have his wallet so we ended up paying for the drinks :)

One of my first memories of what was to come in our lives together occurred when I hailed a cab to take us to our hotel in Downtown San Francisco.

The cab I hailed was pink and inexplicably to me, Sue found this to be hilarious.  She giggled all the way from the airport to our hotel.

Years later we would describe this as road tripping, when Sue and Laura would begin to laugh uncontrollably about something that may or may not have been funny.

Adam and I would look at each other and wonder what in the world is happening.

Cab Drivers reaction when encountering road trippers...

When Sue and first got married she had only been to other other state(Nebraska).

Sue saw the ocean for the first time on our honeymoon and in the years that have followed we have crossed two oceans together, raised our two incredible children Laura and Adam in a house filled with love. 

We said our goodbye's to people we loved who shaped us into the people we are. 

My Grandmother, Sue's Mother and Grandmother, my Aunt Joy and Uncle Norm and my dear friend Kelly. 

We have shared the disappointments during our career's, job loss, a failed business, extended bouts with auto-immune diseases.

Maybe nothing all that remarkable that any couple that has been married a crap ton of years and it is in the ordinary that we find that which makes our lives together extraordinary. 

Thanks for choosing me to share your one wild and precious life with. 

“Instructions for living a life. 
Pay attention. 
Be astonished. 
Tell about it.” 
― Mary Oliver

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Thoughts about Kelly

Six years.

It has been six years now since Kelly's Dad called me to tell me that Kelly had died.

Kelly has been in my thoughts a lot this last week.

I went back and reread many of the posts from Kelly's CaringBridge page during her last month.

It has been six years and it was like stepping back into yesterday.

I cried, I felt sad.  I felt inspired, grateful for her life, for the love she brought to my life.

My wife, Sue who is so much wiser then me has told me for years, that I perhaps I missed the biggest gift that Kelly gave to all of us that knew her.

Gratitude.

Choosing to be grateful in spite of her circumstances.

Kelly chose her life, which meant choosing her cancer for everything that is was.

Adam rented a movie for us to watch last night, About Time.

I loved this line from the movie.

"I just try to live every day as if I've deliberately come back to this one day to enjoy it as it is was the final day of my extraordinary life."

Here's to Kelly.

“The lamp has not been quenched, it’s just that the dawn has arrived”~Irish Proverb

Kelly, Marcy, Molly, Adam and Rose, Disneyland 2001

1. 
   

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Dreaming of Kelly

I had the most amazing dream the other night.

I was in a room full of people, I don't know who they were.

Kelly walked into this room.  Kelly was 25 years old in my dream.  She looked amazing.

I ran over and hugged her and fell into her arms crying.

"Why are you crying?", she asked me in wonderment.

"I am so happy to see you", I told her.

I looked around the room for a familiar face, for the people who would know, who would understand what Kelly meant to me.

There was no one in the room with me who knew who Kelly was for me.  I so wanted to find someone and tell them this is Kelly.

The alarm went off on Sue's I-phone.  I couldn't get back to my dream.

What did this dream mean?  I haven't had a dream about Kelly in such a long time and in this dream she was alive, vibrant.  This was the Kelly I knew while she was alive.

The last month since I have been home from Austin has been very difficult for me.  I am dealing with the aftermath of a blood clot in my left leg.  I have felt discouraged after completing the web training in Austin.  I have felt sad, lonely.

Kelly has always known when I most need her and even now she found a way to reach out to me, to touch and comfort me beyond the portals of time.

In love and gratitude for Kelly Melissa Sandra Grubb.

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Claire's gambit

Claire Davis's last spoken words were to the person who shot her.  "Oh my gosh Karl, what are you doing?"

Claire tried to shine her light into the darkness that had overtaken Karl’s life. That was her gambit, armed only with kindness and concern, she tried to start a conversation with this troubled young man.

I have never before mentioned the name of a school shooter before and Claire's parents call to action for all of us is to not sweep his name under the carpet.  Karl has parent's and a sister.  "Karl is gone now and it is not our responsibility to judge him."~Mike Davis. 

Mike went on to share that he had forgiven Karl.  I was stunned by the courage he showed to be able to say his name.

The minister, challenged all of the Claire's classmates to find the other Karl's in their school.  That is the challenge for all of us.  Find the Karl's in our community, reach out, connect.  "I won't give up on you." 

This was a new perspective on school shootings that I never considered before.  I have steadfastly refused to write their names, banishing them to obscurity.

Missy Franklin spoke at Claire's service today.  She is proud to call herself a Coloradoan.  She grew up 5 miles from Arapahoe High School.  Kudo's to Missy for being a role model, for caring about Claire, for her classmates, for her community.

Colorado leads the nation in school shootings.  I love Colorado, I have lived here my entire life and as awful as that statistic is, I hope no other state will overtake us, because that will only mean that the shootings have continued.

Today I launched a website that was built in honor of Claire.  Please take the pledge to honor Claire with action.  Accept the gambit that she offered armed only with kindness and concern for a classmate.

Go into your community, into your schools and find the Karl's.   Shine her light at the Karl's that are lost.  Arm yourselves with kindness, compassion and concern like Claire did. 

We are Claire's angels now and we are her light.

Claire's light

We found out today that Claire's nickname on her Equestrian riding team is "Fluffy Little Rainbow Child".  FLRC(Flerk) as Claire pronounced it.

If you are on Twitter and Facebook and happen to read this post, please post on your timeline, please retweet with the hashtags,

#honorwithaction, #flrc, #ClaireDavis

#FLRC

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There are no words for this

Claire Davis passed away this afternoon after being shot at point blank range last Friday.

Life is short, love accordingly

As a community, once again we are left with the unthinkable, the unknowable grief of losing another precious life to an act of gun violence.

My heart goes out to Claire's family and all that knew and loved her and whose hearts are shattered tonight.

Statement from the Davis Family:

It is with unspeakable sadness that we write and say that Claire has passed away from the gunshot wound she received at Arapahoe High School on December 13, 2013. Although we have lost our precious daughter, we will always be grateful for the indelible journey she took us on over the last 17 years—we were truly blessed to be Claire’s parents. The grace, laughter and light she brought to this world will not be extinguished by her death; to the contrary, it will only get stronger.

Last week was truly a paradox in that we lost our daughter, yet we witnessed the wonderful love that exists in the world through the tremendous outpouring of support we received. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank the first responders, the school resource officer, security guard and vice principal at Arapahoe High School, the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s office, and the physicians, nurses and staff at Littleton Adventist Hospital. Each played a significant role in giving Claire a chance to live, and demonstrated extreme amounts of professionalism, courage and love. Please know that we will never forget the extraordinary work you did on Claire’s behalf.

We ask that you give us time to grieve the death of our daughter by respecting our wishes for privacy.

With much loving-kindness,
The Davis Family

I never knew Claire and I know that our world is far worse now without her.

As the days turn into weeks and months and into years, we must never forget Claire.

I have to keep moving forward with doing what I can to honor Claire.

I can't tolerate another school shooting.

School violence ends with me.

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What are you tolerating?

"What are you tolerating in your life?"

I was stopped in my tracks when trying to answer this question today. 

What are you tolerating? 

To my shock and shame, the answer that leapt to mind, was "I am tolerating school shootings."  

I live in Colorado and I have witnessed the terror and horror of the shootings at Columbine High School in April, 1999.   Columbine is 15 miles from where I live. 

In September of 2007, our community was rocked once again by the shooting of Emily Keyes.  In the aftermath of her shooting, the I Love you guys foundation was born. 

We wept again for Emily. 

July 20, 2012, less than a mile from my house 12 people were killed at the Century 16 theatre only because they sat in Theatre 9 in Aurora, Colorado. 

A classmate from my son's high school bought a ticket in theatre 9 and didn't make it home to her family that night.  Adam went to a different theater that night.  

Again as a community, we wept for those lives cut short.  One of those killed that night was 6 years old. 

Then there was Sandy Hook, 26 lives. 

We went through the motions of rattling the sword.  The liberal's blamed the NRA and the right wing extremists.  The right wing blamed the liberals.  The President and Congress said nothing could be done.    I blamed and scorned our elected officials for their lack of courage, their inaction. 

I don't pretend to have the answer nor to comprehend the complexities of the right to bear arms versus protecting the lives of children and adults who are massacred for going shopping, for choosing to attend a midnight showing of a movie or going to school. 

There are some that celebrate that only one student was shot on Friday.  This is viewed as a victory after Columbine.  I can't celebrate that an innocent girl, that loves horses was shot in the head because she was sitting in the cafeteria of her high school having lunch with a friend. 

To do nothing again in light of the most recent school shooting makes me a co-conspirator to the madness.   My lack of action borders on the criminal. 

I don't pretend to think that I alone can change what happened to Claire Davis last Friday.  All I know is that I have to do something.  I have to try.  

I can't tolerate another shooting in my community and expect Congress, the President to do what I won't do. 

So today, I commit to honor Claire Davis with action. 

Tomorrow, I am calling my Colorado State representative(Su Ryden), I am calling my Colorado State Senator(Caroll Morgan).  I am going to call my congressman(Mike Coffman), my Senators(Michael Bennet and Mark Udall).  I am calling Governor John Hickenlooper. 

Friday when I fly home from Austin, I am going to draft a letter to everyone of these people and ask them to stand with Claire and honor her with action.  It is past time for them to issue empty press releases.  It is time for action.  There is too much at stake for me, for them, for us to wait for another shooting.   What will it take?  We can't afford another Sandy Hook.  We can't lose another Emily.  We can't lose Claire.  Our world is worse without Emily.  It will be far worse without Claire. 

I can't tolerate this anymore.  I just can't. 

I am giving up my co-conspirator status.  I renounce my complicity in these shootings. 

I invite you to join me and honor with action for Claire Davis. 

Claire Davis

This has to stop. Gun violence and school shootings ends with me. 

If you are inspired to action, please retweet, like on Facebook and most importantly.

Please send a letter of support to Claire and her family, you can mail them to: 

Claire Davis

c/o Littleton Adventist Hospital
7700 S. Broadway
Littleton, CO 80122

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144 dollars in 144 hours

Raise $144 in 144 Hours (6 Days)
Raise $144 in 144 hours, Wednesday, September 18, 2013, at 12:00pm (Noon) and will end on Tuesday, September 24, 2013 at12:00pm (Noon)!

Why raise $144? Every four minutes someone is diagnosed with blood cancer and every 10 minutes someone dies from blood cancer. 

In 24 hours 360 people will be diagnosed with a form of blood cancer.    In 24 hours 144 people lose their lives to blood cancers. Dedicate a day in support of blood cancer awareness month and donate a dollar or whatever you feel moved to in honor of every life lost.

As Jack Bauer would say "We are running out of time." 

If all registered Light the Night participants in the Rocky Mountain chapter raise $144 in 144 hours that means another  $332,496.00 for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society bringing us closer to funding vital life saving research and providing patient services. Together we can hit our $1.1 million dollar goal for this year's Colorado Light The Night Walks and come closer to finding cures!

So that could be 1 person that donates 144.00

                         2 people donating        72.00

                         3 people donating        48.00

                         4 people donating        36.00

                         6 people donating        24.00

                         8 people donating        18.00

                       12 people donating        12.00

                       16 people donating          9.00

                       18 people donating          8.00

                       24 people donating          6,00

                       36 people donating          4.00

                       48 people donating          3.00

                       72 people donating          2.00

                     144 people donating          1.00

Who will you be in this fight against blood cancer?   1 or 1, 1 of 144, 1 of ...  Every dollar counts.  Your contribution brings us closer to the day that we can live in a world without blood cancer.  

You can donate here by clicking on my Light the Night page. 

Thanks in advance for your contribution and know that you are providing support and hope to everyone that is touched in this battle. 

With love for Kelly and Laiken and Melina and so many others, too many others. 

I walk with a gold balloon to remember and honor my angels

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Kelly, Abby and Eeyore

Relay for Life is this Friday in Cut Bank, Montana.  Kelly's Aunt Linda made this luminary for me for the event this week.

Aunt Linda sent me this to me yesterday, oh how my heart soared and ached when I saw Kelly.

It has been over five years since Kelly passed.  I still miss her every day.

I am forever grateful for the nine years I was able to run for her, to spend time with her, to be inspired by who she was for me.

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That's just Potts

I went to the funeral of my dear friend, Parenthia(Potts) Jones yesterday.

I was delighted to see that the service was (SRO), standing room only.  It seemed only fitting that her last race would be a sellout.

SRO for Potts!

A couple of things stood out for me at the service.

A co-worker told a story of the three words that described Potts to him.

If she was doing something unorthodox, he would say "That's just Potts."

If she was doing something that was inspirational, he would say, "That's just Potts."

Creigh Kelly, had been friends with Potts for three decades.  Years ago, she told him that "Martin Luther King had a dream, and so do I."  Her dream was to help people and she did in countless ways.

A mother told a story of how her son had gotten into trouble when he was 17 and had to perform many hours of community service.  She reached out to Potts and asked her if she would work with his son.

Her son was 6' 2" and Potts on her best day in 4 inch heels might have been 5' 0".  She put him to work polishing the brass handrails at the courthouse.

Fast forward 12 years and the mother of this young man visited Potts at hospice she was staying at and she found out that hours earlier her son had come to visit Potts.  That was the kind of impact she had on everyone she met.

One of my favorite memories of Potts is how she threw together "A day to remember 5K", one month after 9-11 to give us a chance to honor those who had been lost on that awful day and to celebrate our country.  My son Adam was 12 years old at the time and Potts told him to register in the running wave for his age group as she knew if he entered in that division he would get a medal.   She always, always put other people first.  That's just Potts!

Love you Potts, I will so miss you.

Happy trails!

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At a loss for words

Today I learned that a dear friend of mine is under hospice care.  She has been battling stage four cancer of the liver and intestines since being diagnosed three days before Christmas in 2011.

The last time Laura and I saw Potts she was volunteering at a 5K road race.  Her battle with cancer hadn't stopped her from her love of volunteering, from coming out and supporting all of the runners she loves and those who love her fiercely in return.

Laura showed Potts her engagement ring and Potts sweetly stated she wanted to come to Laura's wedding and be a stand for her marriage to Chris.

I don't know if there is anyway that she will be able to come and I know without a doubt if she is able she will be there.

So Potts, here's to you.  The kindness you have shown to Laura and my family has mattered greatly to me.  You have made a difference in our lives.

I love you and am sending love and light and prayers your way.

In love and gratitude....

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A father's worth

I thought this was a wonderful story written by Cynthia Occelli who grew up without a father.

"A child secure in their father’s steadfast care and provision moves through the world wearing an energetic cloak of confidence and protection.

A father is the model of a man to his sons and his daughter’s first love.

We need him."~Cynthia Occelli

So on this father's day I want a send a shout out to my Dad, for taking me to Bronco games and shivering in the old east stands at Mile High Stadium when they would lose to Kansas City 56-3, buying me my first bowling ball at Monaco Lanes, teaching me how to build something with my hands, for teaching me how to work hard and to not quit on myself.

And to all the father's that would swim as far as needed in any storm for their children.

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With great love for Laura and her Kitty

Paws

A sad day for the Kinney's.

Laura's kitty died today.  She was 16 years old.

She had been abandoned when she was a kitten.  I am not sure if she ever got over that trauma.

It is never easy to lose a pet, no matter how prepared you think you might be for that day to come.

To my daughter Laura who endured many scratches and bites on her arms when Paws would decide she had been petted long enough.

You gave her a home, a life she wouldn't have had.  You filled her life with love and she loved you.  You were her favorite.  I don't think anyone could have loved her more than you did.

To the day when you meet her again at the Rainbow Bridge.

I love you  ♥

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Love with your heart wide open

I think this is a pretty awesome message for not just Valentine's Day but for every day.

What would our lives be like if we lived into this?

I like this description from Brene Brown about wholehearted living.  And as scary as that is, living and loving from any place is not honoring the purpose of our lives.

Love with your heart wide open, risk your significance.  Enjoy the ride!

"Wholehearted living is about engaging in our lives from a place of worthiness. It means cultivating the courage, compassion, and connection to wake up in the morning and think, No matter what gets done and how much is left undone; I am enough.

It’s going to bed at night thinking, Yes, I am imperfect and vulnerable and sometimes afraid, but that doesn’t change the truth that I am also brave and worthy of love and belonging.

Choosing authenticity is an act of resistance.

Choosing to live and love with our WholeHearts is an act of defiance.

You’re going to confuse, piss-off, and terrify lots of people – including yourself.  One minute you'll pray that the transformation ends, and the next minute you’ll pray that it never ends."~Brene Brown 

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Worldwide Virtual Run for Sherry Arnold

I am participating in a virtual run tomorrow for Sherry Arnold who was abducted one mile  from her home on January 7, 2012 while she was out running.

Please take a moment and watch the video here about the run tomorrow and visit her cousin's blog to read more about the movement.

As someone who loves being a part of the running community, it will be an honor to run for Sherry and take back our roads and hopefully begin a healing process for Sherry's family through a worldwide outpouring of love.

To continue my thoughts this week about love, here is another circumstance that could cause us to doubt, to lessen our resolve.

"When in doubt, love"~Patti Digh

"Love is the answer to everything, baby"~Kim Mailhot

So tomorrow out of love for Sherry Arnold we will shut up and run our hearts out.

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When in doubt, love

Dear Kelly,

Four years have passed since the last time I saw you, four years from the last time I hugged you.

I posted my memories of that day here.  I am so glad that I wrote about our time together that day.  It is a treasured memory like so many others I have about you.  Tucked safely away in my heart.

I think often about not only how you lived the last 37 days of your life, but how you lived your life.

.Many times you had to face your doubts as your cancer returned.  Such a persistent cancer.  I am sure you had to have doubts, how can this happen again?   How can I move forward, how do I live my life?

And I watched you choose love above your doubts.  You chose your life,cherished your time with your family and friends.

Through any doubts, throughout your cancer journey,throughout your life, you chose love.

Wow, wow and WOW!

Did I tell you that I wrote an article about you for a book?  It has been published.  A copy of the book came  last night.  It is a story about us.

I am working with a young woman who is running as a woman of the year candidate for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.  I am sure you would love Cassie.  She is a lot like you.  She has a kind and loving heart, she is courageous, she is a Denver Bronco fan.  Cassie shares a birthday with you.  She is fighting for a world without cancer, standing for your life.

I love you Kelly.  I am forever grateful for the gift of your life and for the gentle nudges you still send me to remind me of your love.

There are many things of that I am not sure of in my life.  The one thing I never doubt is who you are to me in the world.

Love.

No doubt!

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10 minutes to live: Write accordingly!

I am participating in an on-line writing class.  Every day we get a writing prompt and we are too write for 10 minutes each day.  Write as if our hair is on fire.  We write on a lunch sack with a sharpie.  That is our blank canvas to fill, front and back.  Some are writing on the sides as well, using the margin. 


The prompt for Sunday.   You have 10 minutes to live.  Write on your bag everything you need to say in those 10 minutes.


I must confess, I cheated.  I wrote for more than 10 minutes.  I didn't want to stop.  So little time, so much to say. 



I know that is not how life works.  Most are probably not be able to say, "wait, I need more time, come back for me later."


As I began to run out of time and room on my canvas, I felt really sad.  Not from a sense of regret about the life I have lived, but in that I didn't always tell the people in my life how much I loved them, they mattered to me.  I had left things unsaid. 


I found out in the wee hours this morning that my son's store was robbed last night.  He is okay.  I get to celebrate that and will be able to tell him that I love him.   I get another chance.   


I wrote about my family, my family as I grew up and the one wild and precious life as a family that I have been blessed to have with Sue, Laura and Adam. 


I didn't write from regret.  I wrote about good memories, a life I was grateful for. 


Going to Bronco games with my Dad when you couldn't give your tickets away, they were that bad.  Stomping our feet in the old portable East Stands at Mile High Stadium.  That was true Rocky Mountain Thunder.  


Leaving a Bronco game early when Lou Saban fired Floyd Little during the game, hearing the roar of the crowd knowing something magical had happened.  We had to wait to get to the car to find out what had happened. 


I learned how to work hard from my Dad.  Thank you. 


When Laura was a baby, my Dad would take to her to "Swing, slide" park and push her in the swing for an hour.  If she started to cry when he would try and take her out of the swing, he would continue to push her in the swing. 


Coming home from school when we lived in Castle Rock, I think I was in 3rd grade and my mother had bought a toy robot(Herman the Robot).  This was during the Lost in Space era.  She lovingly made Herman some overalls.  I loved that robot! 


As Laura and Adam grew up, there were swim meets, PTA reflection contests, middle school and high school plays.  My mom was always a source of love,  constancy in Laura and Adam's life.


Memories of sledding in Castle Rock with my sister Jan, taking turns going down the hill next to our elementary school.


Sunday night, coming to your bedroom to  "Gawk".  I have no idea how that started.


Treasured memories of time you spent with Laura and Adam as the worlds coolest Aunt.  


Sue, thank you for the life you gave me, the life before Laura and Adam and the life we shared as a family.   You are my best friend, a constant source of faith and love.   You make my heart leap! It has been a great honor that you chose to share your life with me and I am forever grateful for that gift. 


Pizza hut on Friday nights when we first got married, Chicken A' la Sue, walking up the Crookedest street in the world on our honeymoon, taking the kids to Disney World,  riding the cable car in San Francisco with Laura and Adam in 2000.  Things that you say and do that make me laugh.   "How is a person to know" to start our trip to New York.  The infamous incident at the Paris marathon expo.


Laura and Adam, "you are the best of my life."  Who says that, what's that from?


I treasure the memories of many swim meets, trips to Seattle for sectionals. Watching you compete at something you loved so much. You became my reluctant running partner and the trips to the starting lines and driving back home, moments that have meant so much to me.


Driving halfway to the Georgetown 1/2 marathon only to discover you only had one shoe. 


Having you tie my shoe in a clown bow at the end of my first marathon in San Diego and running a marathon with you 12 years later in Paris. 


Getting to be your friend as an adult.  An intention from Sobfest 2005. 


Adam-Broncos, Nuggets, Rockies games.  


Going to Disneyland with you and Kelly's family in 2001.  A memory I will always treasure. 


Ragtime, three magical days for me.  Hearing your voice resonating during the prologue.
  
Tender, touching moments that moved the audience. 


The search for the elusive clean game in bowling. 


Seeing you pound the ball past me on the golf course.


Getting to be your friend as an adult. 


Laura and Adam, "you are the best of my life."  Who says that, what's that from?


I have treasured my life with you. I am so honored that you are my children and that we are the best of friends.


To my family, I love you all and I am so grateful to you for the life you shared with me. 

This was really an emotional exercise for me and it really made me present to something I am not always present to. 


So to rewrite a line from my wife's favorite movies:

Clarence "You see Ross, you really had a wonderful life."


Clarence "Strange isn't. Each man's life touches so many other lives. When he isn't around he leaves an awful hole doesn't he?"

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Wonderful Women

I was on Facebook earlier this morning and just happened to stumble on a comment posted by Patti Digh in response to link that was posted by Kim Mailhot(A.K.A, the Rock Fairy).

Patti's response was "love, love, Love this!"  Well if Patti loves something it is something I want to check out.

I clicked on the link to a post from Kim's blog and by the end of the article, I was in tears.  These are the good kind of tears where you are so incredibly touched by kindness and love that the tears just fall.

I had written to Kim about two weeks ago asking her to limber up her fairy wings and see if she would make  some rocks for Cassandra Perkins woman of the year campaign.

Cassandra, her mom Joni, and I intend to rock this campaign and we are thinking big.  Last time Kim made a batch of rocks(100)  for Laura and me as we were training and fundraising for the Paris marathon last year.

Who better to help us rock this campaign and in the process rock cancer than the Rock Fairy. I asked Kim could we place a larger order?  500 rocks, maybe even 1000?

You can read an inspiring story of love and kindness by clicking here.

Cassandra and I were at a fundraising kickoff meeting earlier this week and we were presented with an icebreaker set of questions.

Who you are.
What your role is in the campaign.
What super power would you have?

Cassandra's answers:

Cassandra Perkins
Woman of the year candidate
"I don't know if this is a super power or not, but if it is, I would put an end to bullying."

Kim referred to Cassandra as a 15 year old wonder woman.  I really loved that description of her and think it is very accurate.

Before coming to the meeting, Cassandra had given a presentation to a group of 25 girls at a middle school,
"Be the voice" on bullying.   Her mom told me that Cassandra had changed the lives of 25 girls!  How awesome is that?

15 year old wonder woman?  Yes!



Just as Cassandra has the backs of these young woman that she advocates for, the Rock Fairy's have Cassandra's back and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's back.

The Rock Fairy's advocating for a world without cancer!

Who is going to win in this fight against cancer, against bullying?

My money is on these wonderful women.


"Love is the answer to every question, Baby!"~Kim Mailhot

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