Travel has been the name of the game today. A drive from Saint Charles, Missouri to my hometown (Dixon, IL) followed by my parents, thankfully, driving me to O'Hare, and finally the flight to Portland, OR. Covering these distances in 12 hours is quite the contrast to the reality that is these upcoming six weeks. You see, pedaling approximately 83 miles per day by bike is much different than traveling over 2000 miles in 12 hours! Speaking of "day", it's a truly unique experience to fly in the direction of a sunset, which we've been experiencing for about two hours now on this flight. As I sit here and reflect on the day, I'm grateful that I has as many opportunities as I have had these past three weeks to reconnect with family and friends before this trip. One of the most noteworthy challenges of this trip will be the absence of any familiar faces for about 25 days. Despite this factor, I know that I'll meet many, many good people along the way; it's only a matter of time... days now. In the waning moments of this sunset, I find myself reflecting on the stories that friends, colleagues, and strangers have shared with me about how pancreatic cancer has impacted loved ones in their lives. What resonates with me is that all these stories have unfortunately had the same outcome: a life of a loved one being taken by pancreatic cancer. No stories, yet, of a loved one being diagnosed, treated, and cured of pancreatic cancer. No stories, yet, of a loved one overcoming pancreatic cancer. No stories, yet, of pancreatic cancer being caught early enough in a loved one for curative treatment. Stories unlike these are out there, but they are a rarity. My hope is that the support of others and the great work done by the Lustgarten Foundation will lead to more stories with endings of saved lives. As backwards as it may sound, my role of spreading the word along this journey is the easy part, and it's a role that I look forward to fulfilling by peddling in less than two days.
top of page
You Might Also Like:
bottom of page