And if the supporters didn’t leave you in a state of awe, getting to know your fellow walkers did. Along the route I read the backs of hundreds of t-shirts, most were memorials to someone who had either survived or died of breast cancer. There was a man with a picture of his wife and kids on his shirt, walking in her memory. She had died of breast cancer 3 years before. Hearing him talk about his wife’s ordeal and how his kids had handled everything, and hearing his pain, was very inspiring. He had made a commitment to walk every year until there was a cure.
There were hundreds of other stories that went with hundreds of other t-shirts. It seemed like the walk was a cathartic event for some of these people, sharing their pain and as well as fond memories, with fellow walkers. I was brought to tears by some; giggled at the stories of others. I, myself, didn’t have a “story”…I was walking so that I would never have a story. I was walking so that my 3 nieces, other family, my friends, would never have a story of their own to share.
At one of the first pit stops, I talked with one of hundreds of survivors about the many treatments she had had. She didn’t expect to finish much of the walk, but had wanted to participate as much as she could. She was wearing a t-shirt with many names of the people (several family members) she had lost to breast cancer. When I left the pit stop, she was still sitting in the medical tent area, and looked very tired…I don’t know if she continued on or not. Many walkers didn’t complete that first day without some help along the way. Some were transported to later pit stops. Some ended their day early and were transported to camp. Although most walkers wanted to walk every mile on their own, the walk wasn’t really about the mileage…it was about showing up, raising funds and awareness, and doing the best you could.
I myself expected to finish the walk. I knew I’d suffer with blisters, as I had been plagued by them during training…but I fully expected to make it with a minimum of pain. Boy, was I in for a surprise!
With a prick of a pin, I had my first 3 blisters lanced that first afternoon. I must have changed my gait or something (to keep off of my already developing blisters) because my knee also started to really ache later in the day (something that hadn’t happened during my training). I still was able to keep up a pretty good pace, however, and was in the initial third of walkers when I walked into camp that afternoon. |
