Running is the greatest metaphor for LIFE .......

The primary picture at the top of my blog states that Hopkinton, the start of the Boston Marathon, is where "it all starts." While in this particular case, there is truth to that sign, for me it started many, many years ago and no where near Hopkinton. I had no idea that single decision, to start running, would take me places, and I'm not just talking about places as in destinations, but places and experiences I most certainly could have missed out on had it not been for running. More specifically, running as a member of the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge Team.

How it all started for me: I dabbled with running, no more than maybe 5 miles at a time, some 15 years ago. I also lived in an apartment at mile 24.5 of the Boston Marathon course for 3 years and said to myself each time as I watched it from the sidelines....."maybe next year." But next year came and went from 1993 until 2006. That was 13 years of "maybe next year!"  Why 2006? Losing my good friend Jordan to pancreatic cancer in August of 2006, 6 months after diagnosis, at age 47 was one reason. This is Jordan and me in Palm Springs, February 2006.

Reason #2. Even though I had already experienced the havoc and wrath that cancer leaves behind on family, friends and loved one's with my mom's battle and eventual death in 1979 when she was just 37 years old, the truth of the matter was that I didn't believe I had what it took to commit to, train for and complete the marathon distance. My younger brother Jeff and my mom....circa 1973.

Reason #3. I was already approaching my mid 40's......if not now, then probably never really resonated for me !!! During the years that I chose to be a spectator at the Boston Marathon, I couldn't help but notice all the runners wearing singlets representing the different charities they were running for. Ironically, I don't ever recall seeing the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge singlet! But in September of 2006, I went onto the B.A.A. website and, under charities, found the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. And the rest, as they say....is history !

I titled this weeks blog.......running is the greatest metaphor for life because there is so much truth to this statement. Running quotes and metaphors abound........here are just a few of my favorites:

"Running is the greatest metaphor for life, because you get out of it what you put into it." - Oprah Winfrey.  I'd change it up a bit because for me, I've gotten a heck of a lot more out of it even though I've put a lot into it.....being a member of the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge Team ! Although 3 marathons I have completed were not associated with the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge, and the sense of accomplishment was amazing in and of itself, nothing pales in comparison to running with this group and for such an important cause.....A World Without Cancer!

"I run because it's so symbolic of life. You have to drive yourself to overcome the obstacles. You might feel that you can't. But then you find your inner strength, and realize you're capable of so much more than you thought." - Arthur Blank  Obstacles or excuses.......such a fine line as there have been many of both. But through inner strength, perseverance and even belief in yourself, you can reach your goals!

After two consecutive weeks of our group training runs being canceled due to snow falling on the days we were scheduled to run, and choosing to run indoors on the treadmill to log miles nonetheless, we were able to meet as a group yesterday and run along the Minuteman Bikeway in Lexington. Other than the half a dozen times that the path intersects active roads, it is a very safe and accommodating place to run. I can't stress enough how great it was to meet as a group again, be reminded why what we are doing is so important, (not that any of us needs that reminder), and for me to log another 17 miles in this weeks long run preparing me for the Boston Marathon, only 7 weeks away now!

As hard as training for and running a marathon can be, I love the fact and am grateful that I am able to make my small contribution to the greater good by running. With only 4 group training runs left, we will be working our way up to a long run distance of anywhere from 20 to 22 miles. The premise, and it's typically true, is that if you can run 20 to 22 miles, you can complete 26.2 miles. Even though, for me, this is not uncharted territory, it never comes easy and requires me, both physically and mentally, to go to a place I only go every once in a while. Although I do have experience on my side, I still get anxious when the time comes.

Before we set out on our run, we gather as a group to sign in, say hi, go through our pre-run stretches and rituals and hear announcements including thanking the volunteers for their help, reading one of the many Barr impact statements, fundraising grand total to date, upcoming fundraising events runners are having, and typically one or more motivational and inspirational stories. This weeks inspiration.........Banners.....lots and lots of banners, all representing children who are currently battling cancer. We also signed banners for two adults battling cancer; one for a runner whose father is battling lung cancer as a non-smoker, and the other for a woman named Carol who my running partner Kerry knows very well.  Everyone was asked to leave a note on each of the banners letting them know that we were running with them in mind and offering hope and encouragement.  There were a total of 15 banners !!!!! Here are just some of them.



I  N  S  P  I  R  A  T  I  O  N 



In life, it's not the cards you're dealt with, but how you play them.  In the five years that I have been associated with DFMC, I am reminded time and again, of people who had every right, justifiably so, to turn a life-altering event that could have left a negative impact on them, into something positive. As a community, we are all dealing with the ramifications cancer has played out in each of our lives. I think it's pretty safe to assume that if you have been around long enough, each and every one of us has either lost a friend, sibling, parent, child, co-worker or relative to cancer or knows someone currently battling this awful disease. Or, someone just mentioned, at some point in time, will be diagnosed with some form of cancer.

The Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge Team is really a melting pot of runners, scientists, doctors, nurses, caregivers, volunteers, donors and most importantly, the cancer patients themselves. All of us have something at stake: ridding the world of cancer. Every life is important. Each life cut short, because of this terrible disease, is yet another reminder to us all that a call to action is required ! We all can do our part. I am reminded of the saying "the whole is greater than the sum of it's parts." Every individual’s efforts added together usually don’t result in something nearly as great as the whole body of people working cohesively does.

Just as a reminder, The Marathon Challenge directs 100 percent of funds raised to the Claudia Adams Barr Program in Innovative Basic Cancer Research, which enables researchers at the leading edge of scientific sleuth work to achieve better cure rates and to enhance patients' quality of life. DFMC took its first steps in 1990 as one of the inaugural organizations in the official B.A.A. Boston Marathon® Charity Program.

We have come so far, but we are not done yet.

"Running is not, as it so often seems, only about what you did in your last race or about how many miles you ran last week. It is, in a much more important way, about community, about appreciating all the miles run by other runners, too." - Richard O'Brien  Here again, I can't help but think about being part of the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge Team and the collective, community effort each and every one of us, runners and non-runners alike, plays in working towards a world without cancer !

Fundraising Update: I am again happy to announce that with each new blog entry, we are making a difference on the fundraising front. As of now, and with your generosity, we have raised $3,985.00, including checks to be applied to my web page. It was also announced yesterday that collectively, the team has raised 1.6 million towards the 4.6 million goal! With just 7 weeks to go before marathon Monday, there is still a lot of fundraising to be done. I again want to thank those of you who have already donated. My goal next Saturday is to log 20 miles on my long run to get me that much better prepared to run 26.2 miles on April 15th. Will you consider making a donation this week and help me and our team get one step closer to a world without cancer?

www.rundfmc.org/2013/stevep.

With gratitude, appreciation and many, many inspired miles.......

Steve

Perseverance : 9 Weeks Until the Boston Marathon

"The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a man's determination."

— Tommy Lasorda

 

Perseverance is defined as the steady persistence in a course of action, a purpose, etc., especially in spite of difficulties, obstacles or discouragement. Deciding to persevere is no more difficult than deciding to quit. And when you decide to keep pressing forward, the rewards are infinitely greater than if you had decided to give up.

 

I chose the word perseverance as the main theme in this weeks entry because all of us can identify times in our lives when we've had to persevere. This certainly holds true for the cancer patient. And while they persevere day after day, though chemotherapy, radiation, surgery or any number of other protocols best suited to combat their particular diagnosis, we too, the non-cancer individuals, need to persevere in any way we can, to do our part and remind them that we are with them each and every step of the way.

Who, among us, has not had to dig deep down, at some point in our lives, to see something through to its completion? In my life, I have been presented numerous opportunities to either persevere or quit and, if I am to be completely honest with myself, have done my share of both. While it is true that in those instances where I chose to quit, I may have missed out on the rewards those particular opportunities offered, luckily, life always seems to present me with others.

 

I realize I am very fortunate that, as things stand now, I have my health and I am able to pursue whatever it is I want to pursue. Having my health is a gift, no doubt, and I try never to lose sight of that and to give thanks for that every chance I can. That's why I feel so blessed and honored to still be able to run and raise funds for innovative cancer research. To be able to do this for those that can't truly is a gift and one I feel compelled, determined and motivated to take advantage of as long as I can. I say "able" because there is a fine line between wanting to do something and being able or not being able to do that something.

 

Ask any runner and they will tell you that running is a love/hate relationship. There are some days when I absolutely love running and other days, not so much ! Runners will agree that they love, (ok....maybe not love so much as enjoy) running, especially when they are feeling good, their body is free of pain or fatigue, and mentally they are in a good spot and have their "mojo" going for them, if you will. However, if any one of those elements is missing, it's easy to understand how the opposite holds true. It makes perfect sense. I can tell you from experience that running long distances can be enjoyable when everything is cooperating. Realistically, the "challenges" or obstacles that present themselves typically do so well into the long run and that's when we have to dig deep, persevere and press forward. Persevere or quit !!!

 

With just 9 weeks until the marathon, that leaves only 6 more weeks to build up our long run distances ideally to the 20 to 22 mile range. We enter a phase called tapering 3 weeks before the marathon where we cut back on weekly mileage to give our bodies a chance to recover, rest and build up strength to run the marathon. With intense training week after week, the likelihood of injury increases, so the taper phase is just as important as the actual training. 

 

Training for a spring marathon in New England poses all kinds of weather challenges. Two weeks ago the group long run was canceled because of extreme cold temperatures. Kerry and I ran 14 miles indoors, on side by side treadmills, at her gym. Mind over matter, I can't say for sure, but what I can say for sure is that there were times when quitting was at the forefront of our thoughts. "No shortcuts" was the theme of that weeks long run and so we forged on, saw it through and were very happy to have those miles logged in the books. Thanks to the blizzard this past weekend, our second group run of the season was canceled. Once again, Kerry and I opted not to take the weekend off, even though it was perfectly justifiable, and ran again, side by side, on treadmills at her gym. This week we added 2 more miles to the distance we did on the treadmills a few weeks ago making it 16 miles. I was so grateful that Kerry was their, along side me, the entire time. We didn't say it at all during the entire run, but both of us wanted to stop long before we even hit the 8 mile mark, let alone mile 16. I speak for both of us when I say that we hope and pray that the weather cooperates the rest of the winter as neither one of us can bear to think about doing any higher distances on the "dreadmill!"  There is a huge difference between running 16 miles on the treadmill and 26.2 miles on a marathon course. I'd rather run 26.2 miles on a marathon course any day !!!

Once we were done, we decided to relax in the hot tub, good for those sore muscles.....right? Well, it turned out not to be a very good decision on my part because I got very dizzy and felt sick to my stomach. While taking a shower, those feelings got worse and I ended up passing out. There were no chairs and it happened before I had the chance to sit down. I ended up hitting my forehead on the side of the shower when I fell down and banged my knee too. When I came to, I was face down on the floor of the shower, cold water pouring down on me and my towel completely soaked. Luckily, other than a very sore forehead and a small bump, lots of ice and ibuprofen did the trick for me. In fact, I showed no signs of a concussion and ate like a king about an hour or so later. I consider myself extremely lucky as there could have been any number of bad outcomes. As for why I got dizzy in the first place, my internal temperature hadn't had the chance to cool off from 2 hours and 40 minutes of running and sitting in that hot water only added to my already high internal temperature. Another valuable lesson learned.

 

Fundraising: I am happy to announce that our fundraising efforts, thanks to so many of you already, continue to come in. As of today and with your help, I am at $2,985 towards my personal goal of $7,000. I am just $500 away from being at 50% of my personal goal. So again, a great big thank you to those of you that have already donated and I look forward to future donations.  I can't say enough how grateful I am that with each new entry in my blog I am able to share with you an increase from the previous entry. This is yet another testament that, collectively, we are all doing our part to be difference makers!

I will close again with the definition of perseverance at the top of the blog as it applies to the work that continues to be done to rid the world of cancer:

Perseverance is defined as the steady persistence (kicking cancers butt is a 24/7 commitment) in a course of action (raise funds for innovative cancer research), a purpose (a world without cancer), etc., especially in spite of difficulties (running a marathon is hard), obstacles (the weather, injuries, self-doubt) or discouragement (the possibilities that the trials may not work, time is running out). Deciding to persevere is no more difficult than deciding to quit. And when you decide to keep pressing forward, the rewards are infinitely greater than if you had decided to give up.

With heartfelt thanks and many, many inspired miles......

Steve

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Goodbyes are not forever..... -Anonymous

On Sunday, January 27th, our family received word that the matriarch of our family passed away. Affectionately called mom, Nana, LT and peach, Laura Tombarello soared with the angels the day after celebrating her 89th birthday, following a month-long hospitalization. As my step-mother Jane said so eloquently of her mother, "We all did our best to care for you." "If love alone could have saved you, you would live forever." Of the many things people remembered about Laura during her memorial and all the pictures of her on display for everyone to see, the one constant was her smile. She loved to laugh and she smiled all the time. Thank you for your beautiful smile.....until we meet again.

Goodbyes are not forever. Goodbyes are not the end.
They simply mean I'll miss you until we meet again!
- Anonymous

I dedicated my training run to Laura this past Saturday morning and what a great run I had. I was able to cover 17 miles in 2 hours and 40 minutes. A course known for being extremely hilly, especially the last half mile, I felt strong from start to finish. Thank you Nana, Laura, Peach.....for being the wind beneath my wings.

Barr Impact Statement: Chemotherapy: Determining When to Use

- Discovery of a new test to determine whether specific cancer cells will die from chemotherapy, enabling a better way to determine which patients will benefit from chemotherapy.

Normal cells of the body are constructed so that if they become sufficiently damaged or

abnormal, programmed cell death, or apoptosis, rapidly eliminates them before they can
cause any harm. Cancer cells, which bear many abnormalities, apparently have found ways
to escape this death sentence through “antideath” proteins. Anthony Letai, MD, PhD, used
Barr Program funds in 2005 to develop a test to determine whether a patient’s specific
cancer cells will be killed by chemotherapy, thereby enabling the selection of the most
appropriate treatment. Dr. Letai is currently collaborating with drug companies who are
interested in commercializing this test and making it available clinically.

Just before we left the club to start our run, we heard from a fellow teammate whose wife is currently battling cancer. He said that although she has a long road ahead of her, they both remain hopeful that, through the care she is receiving at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, she will one day beat this disease. He too battled prostate cancer at one time.

 Boston Sports Club in Waltham was where we gathered this past Saturday, though most, if not all of the run takes place along the back roads of Lincoln, MA. What I especially like about the course is the out and backs that we do on a few of the roads. This is not a course where we all run out in one direction, hit the turn around point, then head back to where we started. Instead, we can choose which part of the course we want to run on, depending on the distance we plan to run that day. What's really nice about this training run is that, because there aren't that many homes on some of the roads we run on and therefore, not a lot of traffic, we often pass our teammates running back from a turn around point where we get to wave to one another, high-five each other, and tell each other "nice job!" I really appreciate hearing my fellow teammates saying "looking strong" and I know they appreciate hearing that from me as well. As I mentioned, this course is notorious for many hills, the biggest one with only a half mile to go. I don't think it's longer than heartbreak hill on the marathon course, but it is definitely steeper! But I am always reminded by Kerry that each "obstacle" is just another opportunity to get stronger.........enough said !!!!!

There were many positives about this particular run: 1) no fatigue....I felt as though I could have run more (but was glad it was over for this week), 2) no quad or calve muscle cramping (I used to cramp all the time, both in training runs and races, but seem to have figured out, after 4 years, how to avert them), 3) MCL tear is still not an issue when I run, 4) plantar fasciitus not a factor either !!! The funny, or not so funny thing about distance running, is the good week/bad week thing where some weeks you just run better than others. This was clearly a good week for me, and for that I am grateful ! The challenge for me, whether it's 90 degrees or 20 degrees, is my overactive sweat glands which makes keeping dry, especially in cold temperatures, my particular "challenge. As always, a great big Thank You to the volunteers who braved the cold temperatures to help us out. I am able to leave a change of dry clothing, like a jacket and extra hats and gloves, just in case !!!! I saw this a while back and felt it was made especially with me in mind.

Ten weeks from tonight, I will be reflecting on another Boston Marathon that has come to pass. Ten weeks seems so far away, but the truth of the matter is that it will be here before we know it. What it really means is that there are only seven more group training runs left. And, between now and then, I hope to work my way up to some 18 mile runs, 20 mile runs and with any luck, a 22 miler 3 weeks before the big day.

Fundraising: I am happy to announce that our fundraising efforts, thanks to so many of you, continue to come in. As of today and with your help, I am at $2,330 towards my personal goal of $7,000. It was announced at Saturday's group run that, collectively, the team is at $1.2 million towards the team goal of $4.6 million. So again, a great big thank you to those of you that have already donated.

Nora Searle

While volunteering at one of the group training runs last year, I met a woman named Pamela. She asked me how I got involved with the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge and I shared my story. I asked her the same question and it was then that she told me about her niece Nora. Nora was diagnosed with synovial cell sarcoma, a soft tissue cancer, during the summer of 2009. It is a rare cancer. Only about 1 to 3 individuals in a million people are diagnosed with this disease each year. It can occur at any age, but it is more common among teenagers and young adults. I saw Pamela a few more times during last winter always asking her how Nora was doing.

Nora fought long and hard, receiving the best care from her doctors and team at the Jimmy Fund Clinic. Sadly, Nora lost her battle on April 15th, 2012, at age 14.

I asked Pamela if she thought it would be ok to share Nora's story. Pamela spoke to her brother Bob & his wife Jennifer, Nora's parents. Though still very difficult for them to talk about, they were gracious enough, through Pamela, to allow her to tell me a little bit about who Nora was. "In her too-short time with us, she touched many lives and we are all better for having had her with us at all." "She was smart, funny, had a great fashion sense and could beat just about anyone in cribbage, even when highly medicated." "I was her victim more times than I care to admit." "One of her greatest loves was soccer, both playing and following all levels of (mostly women's) leagues." "Nora also loved the Red Sox and had the great adventure of going to Spring Training 2011 with the Jimmy Fund, where she got to meet and have her picture taken with many of the players." "Jacoby Ellsbury being a particular favorite." Besides her parents, Nora also left behind a younger brother Owen, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins.

Here is Nora playing soccer and a picture of her taken at a family wedding. Regarding Nora's fashion sense, Nora's dad wanted everyone to know that she is wearing his suit coat because it was cold this particular day. He didn't want anyone to get the wrong idea. Between the sun glasses, the pose and everything going on with Nora's outfit, I'd say she was definitely making a fashion statement !!!! Even though I have never met Bob & Jennifer, I am so grateful to them, and to Pamela, for allowing me to share their personal story here. The Boston Marathon is being held this year on April 15th, Nora's 1st angelversary. I will be sure to honor her memory in a very special way that day. Thank you again Bob, Jennifer & Pamela!

As we all know, cancer is not prejudiced. It can hit any one of us at any time. Young or old, black or white, male or female. A World With Cancer is our reality now. A World Without Cancer is the ultimate goal. Will you help me be a difference maker and make a donation? 100% of your donation goes directly to The Barr Program.

www.runDFMC.org/2013/stevep.

Until next week....I thank each of you again for taking the time to read this weeks blog and for your support!

With gratitude and many inspired miles........Steve