The Livestrong Challenge

I have a short trip coming up - small on the calendar, but huge in significance - that I'll write more about soon.  This is just a preview.

In a little over a month from now, I'll be joining about 3,000 other people in Austin, Texas in a fund-raising event for the Lance Armstrong Foundation.  On a cool, dark Sunday morning, I'll get on my bike and set off on a long ride through the Hill Country.  After a dozen miles or so, when the peloton thins out, I'll have solitude under a enormous, splendid sky, with only the cadence of my pedaling to mark the time.  It's an odd time, when you are completely one with the physical effort, the elegant machine underneath you, the force of the wind (at your back, you hope!), and the sun on your skin, while at the same time, your mind is utterly free to roam.   

When I hit mile 80 or so, where my mind roams to is how hot, tired and thirsty I am.  But before I succumb to that, I marvel at the positive energy that radiates from this community of cancer survivors, people living with cancer, friends, family, and those who honor loved ones lost to cancer.  You might think that this is a depressing scene, but you would be wrong.  These people are a pleasure to be with, and their embrace of life inspires joy and hope.

Please take a minute to look at the Livestrong website and learn about this organization.  I like them and support them because they offer concrete, practical help to people in dire need of guidance in the crazy aftermath of a cancer diagnosis.  They use their resources not to re-invent the wheel or duplicate the work of other organizations, but to support and arrange partnerships among established groups on the theory that co-operation and sharing resources can add significantly to the results of solo efforts. 

They're great people.  And they ride bikes!