My 5K Walk...

I signed up for a 5K Walk, which was very optimistic of me, since I have barely been able to walk down the hallway in my home. I haven't even been walking to the mailbox, because I've been so weak and off-balance. This 5K was important to me though. It was to raise money for the NOCC, National Ovarian Cancer Commission, and I walked in memory of my mom and my niece. They were both taken from this life much too soon, mom at 65 and Lizzy at 17!

I was in the Virtual Walker category, since the actual walk was in Arlington, Texas, so I walked on my treadmill. I broke the walk into 5 parts, and the final leg was 22 minutes. It took me 108.51 minutes to walk a 5K, broken into those 5 parts over a 6 hour period. A 5K walk would have been a breeze a few years ago, but age and MS have changed many things I once did easily. Even so, sometimes it's important to push our boundaries. To challenge our limitations. I was completely prepared to accept it, if I was only able to walk a quarter mile or less. One important thing I've learned, during the past 14 years of living with Multiple Sclerosis, is to recognize when you've reached your limit. That's why I had to break the walk into parts. Each time I stopped, I didn't know if I'd be able to get back on the treadmill. I rested, drank lots of water, and began again.

I'm proud of raising money for this cause. I'm proud of pushing myself and making it to that virtual finish line. As I walked, I imagined mom and Lizzy cheering me on. I imagined a world where no one else would have to lose a mother, a daughter, a grandmother, a granddaughter, a sister, a wife, an aunt, or a niece to this deadly disease.