Some final thoughts

Yesterday was my last-and longest – ride. I actually rode a bit more slowly than my previous rides. Recently my New Jersey pastor, Jessica, gave a sermon recently about “noticing”.

So on my final ride, I was noticing:

-Planters on porches, changing from summer flowers to fall mums

-Halloween decorations

-Puddles of standing water, left over from last weekend’s storms

-Beach residences with shades drawn, and no cars in the driveway, owners probably gone until the spring

-Fewer cars on every road

-shorter hours for retail establishments

-some stores shuttered permanently

-beach access still restricted

I’ve been so inspired by my donors’ generosity.

So many of you have been affected directly or indirectly by a cancer diagnosis.

I’ve also been inspired by reading the posts of other riders around the country.

Pastor Jess also gave a sermon this month about “Thanks”-

I want to be sure to express my thanks to all of you for your donations and encouragement.

I thank Patty Whitehouse for introducing me to the GCC community. And I thank Amy Shields for opening my eyes to the difficult choices that parents have to make after receiving such a diagnosis.

I thank the other riders for their pictures, their posts of their success, as well as their frustrations and injuries, and heartwarming stories. ❤️

Thanks to the doctors, the nurses, and everyone on cancer care teams.🥰

I feel gratitude and admiration for the scientists and researchers who work every day to discover new treatments.👏

And thanks to the families of these kids who shared their stories and their medical and emotional journeys. I continue to keep them in my thoughts and prayers. I’ve been thinking this month especially about Sully Shields from Annapolis, Zora from Indiana, and Madison from Ohio. I am reminded daily of one of our little ambassadors, 4 year old Charlotte. Her picture/story is still on my refrigerator. ❤️

We WILL find better treatments for these kids.

As we say at The Great Cycle Challenge-“children should be living life, not fighting for it.”

Oh, the powerful ocean

I returned to Delaware to try to get my miles in by riding in a flat area, with decent bike lanes.

Mother nature had other plans. We experienced a powerful nor’easter along the East Coast. Strong winds and pounding rain have done great damage to our beautiful beaches.

I’ve been forced to ride indoors at a local gym. 😖That is hardly what I had in mind for this month.

But circumstances change and we have to adapt.

All this talk about flooding, has caused me to think of these families and these kids for whom I ride. They must be flooded with emotion when they receive such a diagnosis. They are flooded with information which they have to swim through to make the best choices they can for their child. I imagine sometimes they feel they are drowning in it all. And I think of the scientists and researchers who spend their days trying to discover new and better treatments. They also may be flooded with new data, failed experiments and threats of less funding.

Today, as the winds have gotten calmer and the sea is less threatening, I sent a prayer of hope to all of those involved in this important work. Wishing a period of calm for the kids, their families, their caregivers and the researchers.❤️

Against the wind

As I was riding today, I was thinking about this old song from the 1980s. I was really riding against the wind. There were several times when I felt the wind gust actually blowing me and my bike sideways . Here in Delaware we are experiencing what is called a nor’easter. The winds are significant I am afraid it is going to erode our already vulnerable coastline. There’s not much rain – but the winds push the water into streams and canals. There is significant flooding in low lying areas.

I think about the families I am riding for. There must be days when they are flooded with emotion and overwhelmed with decision-making. I imagine there are days when they feel “underwater “.

I can only hope that the funds raised this month will help scientists discover better options for the kids and their families.

So these last days of September, I think about Sully, Zora, Madison (in Ohio) and our ambassador kids, Charlotte and Kai. They are so brave and strong.