Well, the time has come to hit the road again! I am off to Boston today in preparation for the 119th running of the Boston Marathon, on Monday, April 20. Boston is the world's most famous marathon and all runners dream of running it.
For months I have been training hard to be strong on the beautiful course all the way from Hopkinton, a delightful village of heritage houses, over hill and dale, up the famous Newton Hills, especially Heartbreak Hill, and thence down into Boston. I know it is a tough course as I ran it in 2004 and 2006. This is likely to be the last time I will run it and I intend to celebrate!
I was deeply upset by the bombings near the finish line 2 years ago that killed 3 innocent bystanders and injured hundreds. An 8 year old boy died. Just imagine the horror. He goes out to enjoy the thrill of watching the runners come in and he dies. In any event, I am running to celebrate life, love, forgiveness and redemption. I am also running to make a clear statement that no matter what happens, I will run while I can. Runners cannot be intimidated! I have many friends who are travelling from White Rock and Surrey to run, a group of 16 in all, so we will have a very special time together.
If you would like to track my progress on Monday, April 20, go to the website www.baa.org and enter this bib number - 24248. You will then get a message every 5 ks to say I have crossed another line! I hope to complete the course in about 4 hours, laughing all the way! I will start running at 11.15 am, Boston time.
I am also running to celebrate my own survival against the odds. I will wear a shirt that celebrates the Save Your Skin Foundation, a local organization that has offered me support and comfort. There is currently no organization in BC or Canada that funds research specifically into the rare cancer that afflicts me. I am in the process of reaching out to SYS to see if we can work together not only to raise funds, but also to support others who are stricken by this dreadful disease. To see a hopeful video recently produced by SYS, click here:
I'm Living Proof - A Video About Survivorship - YouTube
Feb 18, 2015 - Uploaded by saveyourskinfdn
April 20 will be a wonderful day for me. I hope you enjoy it too. Peace and love, Nigel
Nigel, I will definitely monitor your progress on Monday! What a fab tool from baa.org.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the SYS video. You are certainly Living Proof. And your smile is contagious. :-)
I know you'll have fun this week with friends and running. Go, Nigel!
Nigel, an inspirational message from you in 'I'm Living Proof - A Video About Survivorship - YouTube'. Best wishes for a fabulous run in Boston with all your wonderful friends. Wishing you much 'surprise, delight and hope'.
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