39 Miles isn't enough??!!

First off, thank you for reading my blog. I so appreciate your enthusiasm. Several of you have asked what the blog name, ChurchLadyWalking, is all about.  It’s simple, really. For the past seven and a half years, I’ve been the Administrative Assistant for New Beginnings Moravian Church in Huntersville, NC.  (great church, great pastor, great group of people, you should check it out – I know, a shameless plug, but it’s my blog so live with it!) Prior to that, I co-led a Youth Group at another church, taught Sunday School, and spent 9 months as its Interim Secretary.  My sons and husband started calling me Church Lady. The “walking” part – well, that should be easy to figure out J

Anyway, when last we “spoke,” I had heard a commercial for the Charlotte Avon Walk for the Cure; not once, not twice, but repeatedly over the course of a day. I took this as a sign . . . I’m big on signs . . . that this was something I should consider – could I do this? could my walking make a difference?  39 miles in two days?  Yikes! Was God leading me to do this? It would certainly give me something to focus on; get my mind off my father’s passing, family dynamics, and the work that still had to be done – sorting and boxing of his things, etc.  But 39 days?   walking?  I don’t like to walk. I rationalized that if after Day One I had had enough, I could just go home.  Checked it out online and requested an information packet. In the meantime, I PRAYED, a lot, and asked God to guide me.  Just in case He was busy, I posted a status on fb asking if anyone has ever participated in the Walk, and to weigh in J

In the meantime, I learned that one of the church members sons’ had organized a team in Tampa for the Susan G. Komen Walk this fall, in memory of his wife, Jenn. She lost her battle several years ago . . . AND, a good friend (from Huntersville) was going to be part of the team.  So… more prayer followed --- and the decision was made.  Instead of walking 39 miles in two days, I’d be walking 60 miles in three days; instead of being close to home, I’d fly to Tampa. Let’s recap – I don’t like walking, I don’t like flying – perfect!  I didn’t say it made sense, I just believe that I’m supposed to do this; that God is leading me. Hope I didn’t misunderstand His plan!

The origin of this adventure!

So... here I am, blogging . . . not because I have important things to say, not because I think anyone will be interested in anything I have to say, but just because I need a way to document the challenge I've decided to undertake . . . in other words, IT'S ALL ABOUT ME!  The challenge?  the Susan G. Komen 60 Mile, 3-Day Walk in Tampa, FL October 26-28th.
How did this happen?  What would possess a 54 year old, overweight mother of two grown sons and church secretary to decide that it's a good idea to walk 60 miles in 3 days in Tampa, FL of all places?  The answer to this question is not a simple one -- more like an onion, many layers, some known at this time, some that I am discovering as I go about training for this event. 
While I've entertained the idea of "walking" for a charity in the past, the last time I participated in one was back in 2002-2003 (I believe) when our youth group was part of CropWalk in Charlotte -- "ending hunger one step at a time" -- a 5k walk through the streets of our fair city. Bought a new pair of sneakers just for the occasion, the children made a banner, and we walked the 3.something miles for a good cause. Did I enjoy it?  the fellowship, the antics of the youth, the idea behind the walk -- ABSOLUTELY...the walking -- ABSOLUTELY NOT!  You see, I don't like walking; it's boring, tedious, and time-consuming!  So, it makes perfect sense that I would commit to walk 60 miles, don't you think?!
The cause is a worthy one, without a doubt -- to raise funds to be used in research to end breast cancer! Over the past 29 years, SGK has trained more than 400 researchers, and funded more than 1800 research projects. It has provided more money for breast cancer research and community health programs than any entity besides the US government.  While the above statistics would certainly be a great reason to participate in this event, I didn't know any of these facts until yesterday!

 If the truth be told, this idea was borne as a result of my father, George passing away this past February 2nd -- he was 91 years old, and up until a fall in early January, followed by a second fall a week later, did amazingly well for a man his age, with as many ailments as he had since he was in his early 50s -- you'll have to take my word for it that my father was a force of nature; raised by a loving mother, and abusive father (who died when my dad was 11), brother to several sisters, husband of 57 years to my mom, Mary, father of four, grandfather to 15, great-grandfather to 15, friend to many.... The depression left an indelible mark on him, and he reminded us often that "what you kids need is a good depression to teach you the value of a dollar."  But, I digress . . . after his second fall in early January, my father's health declined rapidly, and in the space of less than four weeks, he went from Home, to Hospital, to Nursing Home, to Hospital, to Palliative Care, to Hospice.  During that time, he moved in and out of lucidity and I was fortunate to be able to be with him the last couple of weeks. I actually spent my birthday at his bedside. While he didn't always know my name, he did recognize his "baby" and I will forever be grateful for that. The last few days before his passing, he was in tremendous pain and it was gut-wrenching to have to see him struggle, and be completely powerless to help. I pray you never find yourself in that position.  I will admit (only in this blog) that I am a "bit" of a control freak -- I don't see that as a bad thing necessarily -- so not being able to help him was impossible.

Almost 5 months later, I still can't accept that I was useless to my father when he needed me most. And, it's one of the reasons, after much prayer, that I decided that I needed to do something useful, something that could/would make a difference. And, then I heard an Avon Walk-for-the-Cure commercial on the radio, and an idea was borne . . . .