31 days of Wishes: Day 4

I love this thought from one of the people I follow on Twitter.

"Pick one cause that makes your blood boil and your heart ache and work to change it. Then, never give in. Never. Never. Never"-Eric Harr

For Eric, it is  about fighting the obesity epidemic and empowering women. He believes in this so much that he is committed to raising one million dollars for CARE as he trains for the Hawaii Ironman next fall.  Please take a couple of minutes to watch the "Girl effect".

For me the cause that makes my blood boil and my heart ache is the fight against blood cancer. 

Today my wish for everyone to find the cause that lights you up and then never give up, be relentless in your efforts to effect the change you seek.  It's all about taking action.

Do you have a cause that makes your heart ache?  What is the wish you have for your cause?

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31 days of wishes: Day 3

 A wish is a hope or desire for something.

What would be the things you would wish for?  Riches, love, a new car.  I am sure as a kid, I would have wished to have been a major league baseball player.

My top wishes for the day.

The possibility of a world without cancer of any kind.

That all dogs and cats in shelters find good homes.

Do you have a life changing wish?  What would you wish for if anything you wished for could come true?

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30 days of Thanks: Day 30

Today I am  thankful for:

For the thankfulness that I have been able to live during the 30 days of thanks.

That my friends Sarah and Ryan come back season after season with Team in Training, undeterred by injuries and are relentless for a cure.

Sarah is participating in 31 days of wishes.  Please check out her first wishes post.

For a wonderful friend from church who has done so much for me in the last year.

For the love that lives on in my heart for Kelly. 

For my family.

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31 days of Wishes: Day 2

I am finding wishing to be much more difficult than finding things to be thankful for.

It will be easier for me to wish things for others than for myself.

Having said that my wishes for today are for me.

To be happy at work.

To finally shake this lingering injury so I can enjoy running again.

To be able to run a marathon sometime in 2010.

What things do you wish for for yourself, for others?

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30 days of Thanks: Day 29

Today I am thankful for:

My laptop being under warranty and getting repaired at no cost :)

A cup of hot chocolate and marshmallows on a cold night.  Brrrr

My wife being such an interesting and inspirational person.

Food Bank of the Rockies is a 501C charity so my company will match my donation for the Cans for comments Blogathon.  This is the last day of the Cans for Comments blogathon, so please leave a comment.

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31 Days of Wishes: Day 1

Today begins 31 days of wishes.

I have been thinking about some whimsical things to wish for, but thought for the first day of this new month that I would wish for something that I have always wanted other people to have since I first started running for Kelly in January 1999.

I was so incredibly fortunate to have Kelly be assigned as my patient hero during my first event with Team in Training.  They have since changed the name to Team hero.

Kelly and I lived almost 900 miles apart.  I live in a suburb of Denver, Colorado and Kelly lived in a small town in Montana about 40 miles from the Canadian border.  Montana was part of the Rocky Mountain chapter which is no longer the case.

Kelly was 10 years old and in remission when I first started training for the San Diego Rock and Roll marathon.

Over the next nine years, I was blessed to be a part of her cancer journey.  Kelly's family became my family.

There were numerous trips to Seattle to visit her where she underwent treatment for the Leukemia.

There was a magical trip to Disneyland in 2001 that Kelly invited me to when it looked like it might be the last trip she would take with her family.

There was another family vacation in Calgary later that summer.  Hiking around Lake Louise, visiting the little shops in Banff.  Hugging Kelly at the finish line of the Calgary marathon.  A trip to the Calgary zoo after the marathon.

Dancing with Kelly at Marcy's wedding.

Trips to Cut Bank for prom and later to see her walk with her class when she graduated in 2007.

A trip to Seattle in 2008 where I got to share in the moment of Kelly meeting her transplant donor for the first time.

Crossing the finish line of many marathons, century rides and even a couple of  triathalons.

This young girl that I first began running for at the age of 10, was my hero, my inspiration to do things I never thought I could do, ever dreamed I could do.

She taught me to never give up. 

She taught me about courage.

She taught me about joy, about living and loving life. 

Kelly had cancer.  She chose her cancer.  She chose her life.

I have always wished for other people in Team in Training to be able to have the experience I had with Kelly. 

No one would ever stop doing Team in Training.  Blood cancer wouldn't stand a chance.

My wish would be for everyone to meet a Kelly in their lifetime.

My life was changed forever by knowing and loving this beautiful young girl.

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30 days of Thanks: Day 28

Today I am thankful for: 

This picture of one of my favorite people(Cathie) at the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Luekemia and Lymphoma Society.

                                           Cathie, me and Esperanza after the run


A quiet day at the office on my first day back from vacation.

Dell shipped my recovery disks for my laptop.

Please take a minute to leave a comment to benefit the Food Bank of the Rockies!

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