“No one is ever really lost as long as their story still exists.” --R.M. Romero
I've gotten into a new habit on many of my training rides this spring and summer, as I prepare for the 2017 Pan Mass Challenge (PMC). Often now, when I arrive at my destination after a long afternoon ride, or stop to rest at a halfway point, I take out my phone, lean my bike against the nearest landmark and snap a photo of my riderless cycle. I think it’s my way of somehow reminding me and the universe, that: “Yes, I am still here. I can still ride. And so I will keep on pedaling.”
I’ve got snapshots of my battered blue road bike on a
bright blue July 4th in Franklin
center, leaning against a weathered wooden bench, white puffy clouds in the distance.
There’s a shot of my two wheeled vehicle in front of the oversized gothic doors
of the chapel at Wellesley College; and one image of my ride propped against a huge
cherry red “University of Massachusetts” sign at the entrance to my old school,
UMass.
The photo I cherish most is one of my trusty bicycle
carefully balanced on the side of a simple granite marker in Medfield,
just down the road from my house. That stone stands sentinel like, next to a cemetery,
on the grounds of the old Medfield
State hospital. A brass plaque simply declares: “Remember us:
for we too have lived, loved and laughed.”
This is my eighth summer doing the PMC, the largest athletic
fundraiser in the world. Come this Saturday and Sunday 5,000 of us we will seek
to raise $48 million dollars for cancer care and research, at the Dana-Farber
in Boston. One
hundred percent of every dollar raised goes directly to this world class
institution.
That’s why I ride.
But I also ride to remember: those who lived and loved
and laughed, but whom cancer stole away.
A dear mentor, Sue. A kind
cousin, Kathy. A thoughtful church
member, Dottie, and many more too. And I
also ride so that those who battle cancer right now—like Bob, and Angela, and T
Michael—that they might continue to live, love and laugh, for many years to
come.
It’s far too easy in this life, as we whiz along doing the “oh
so important!” stuff we seemingly must do, to forget those who came before us, those who
struggle even now quietly: with ill health or life challenges. The best life always remembers that in fact we stand on
the shoulders of those who are now gone.
The best life lives with mercy and care towards those who still need
our help.
That’s why I ride.
So here’s my request: come Saturday morning please say a
prayer for all the riders: for safety and a brisk tail wind and good weather. Say a
prayer for the 3,000 volunteers who make it all happen with grace and joy. Say a prayer that one
day cancer might be history, that we won't need the PMC anymore. Say a
prayer for the bicycles without riders: their memories still inspires us to ride
on. And yes: if you’d like to make a
donation, that would be great too.
Remember.
They lived. They loved. They laughed. May God keep us to the promise to not forget: every step, every mile, and every pedal stroke, in this miracle called life.
They lived. They loved. They laughed. May God keep us to the promise to not forget: every step, every mile, and every pedal stroke, in this miracle called life.
Very well said !! Thank you for inspiring me to ride with you this year and be part of this event !
ReplyDeleteThanks Scott--it is a real gift yto have you on team Pilgrim too.
DeleteJust beautiful John. Best wishes as this weekend approaches.
ReplyDeleteThanks Nancy :]
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