The Latest MS-adventure

"Sometimes even to live is an act of courage."

~Lucius Annaeus Seneca

"Courage does not always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice

at the end of the day saying, 'I will try again tomorrow.'"

~Mary Anne Radmacher

"At the end of the day, the fact that we have the courage

to still be standing is reason enough to celebrate."

~Grey's Anatomy

Why the thoughts on Courage? Because it's time once again to "Join the Movement" and raise money for the 2008 Walk.

I became involved in the MS Walk last year because of my friend Lisa. She scoffs when I call her courageous. You tell me what you think. Here is my version of Lisa's story:

In August 2006 I returned to my teaching job and was excited to have a neighbor who was new to the school. Her name was Lisa Weaver, and although she had subbed at the school the prior year, I'd never really had a chance to get to know her. Within days, Lisa and I became the best of friends- she truly became the sister that I never had. When summer turned to fall, Lisa came to school one day with a cane and could not stand up straight. She told me it was no big deal, but she had MS, and sometimes the weather change affected her. A few days later she was back to her normal self, and I didn't think much more about it. On March 19, 2007, I celebrated Lisa's 32nd birthday with her. Two days later the cane was back and she looked to be in bad shape. By 10:00 that morning, she had pulled me out of my classroom and asked me to come with her and to not be afraid. We were trying to get to the faculty room, but Lisa's legs would not take her that far. We sat down on a bench and then she literally crawled into the closest room where she had a seizure. I was terrified but I knew that I needed to be as strong as possible for Lisa. A true Sicilian to the core, Lisa is pretty much as stubborn as a donkey. She was not considering going home for the day, rather she was figuring out how to get back to her room and finish the day. Over the next week or so, Lisa tried to prove to everyone- including herself- that she could continue teaching. Finally, she relented and went on disability for awhile. During this time I was obviously very concerned. I had to do something for my friend, but what could I do? Other than shuttling her 4 year old daughter, my "niece" Izzy, home from school once a week or so, I had no idea what to do. I was scared to death of what was happening to her. I remained amazed at Lisa's optimism and strength despite what she was going through.

During this time, one of the school parents formed a team to participate in the 2007 MS Walk. Because I didn't know what else to do, I started trying to get people involved in the Walk. I thought maybe I could raise a little bit of money in Lisa's honor and get the kids in her class to walk in her honor as well. Little did I know what a phenomenal outpouring of love was about to happen. I sent an email similar to this one and was (amazingly) able to raise close to $12,000. I absolutely couldn't believe it. I ended up being the 10th top fundraiser in Northern CA!!! As a result of the fundraising, Lisa and I were invited to a private box at Raley Field for "Strike out MS Night." We also were invited to the Dinner of Champions in San Francisco. This cause became something so important to me and so close to my heart because I knew that I had to do something to help my friend – even in an indirect way.

Fast forward to this year. Lisa came back after the summer excited and ready to teach again. Unfortunately, that wasn't in God's plan for her. After 6 weeks, she was forced back on disability and ultimately came to the conclusion that she could not be both the teacher she wanted to be and also the wife and mother she needed to be. It took awhile for her to accept this. As she puts it, she finally woke up and had her Michael Jackson "Man in the Mirror" moment and realized she had to make a change. She realized that while there were many things she could not do, there were many more that she could do if she put her mind to it. As her strength began to come back, she began exercising and eventually decided that she was going to train for a half marathon. Today, she is doing amazingly well. She gets her teaching fix by tutoring some of her former students and volunteering in Izzy's classroom frequently. She runs on the trails in Folsom and is excited to run in the Disney Half-Marathon on August 31st. It's truly remarkable for me to see how far she has come.

Lisa and I both know that she could wake up at any time and be unable to walk again. This is very scary to think about. But while she is healthy we will walk together because she CAN. We will walk together for all the others who can't. I am just so thrilled that she will be with us at the Walk this year. Last year we walked to honor her, and this year we'll walk with her to celebrate her! In honor of how far she has come, and how far she is going, she chose to name our team this year "Lucky 13." She feels very lucky to be able to train to run 13 miles, 13 months after regaining her freedom from her wheelchair.

After last year's MS Walk, we decided to pick a fundraising goal together. We decided that we just wanted to be #1 in the Sacramento Walk- no biggie, right? (We're not at all competitive!!) Actually, our main goal was that we just wanted to beat the mayor, Heather Fargo - the number 1 fundraiser for our walk last year. Sadly, we got our fundraising efforts to a slower start than we had planned, and now we are trying to make up for it!

Last year I was overwhelmed by the generosity of strangers, and I continue to be extremely grateful for the outpouring of care and concern for Lisa. The National MS Society uses the theme "Join the Movement" for the Walk events throughout the country. Thank you again for "joining the movement" towards a world free of MS.

If you would like to contribute you can click here. Thanks for your support!