There are chunks of gold, silver and bronze, precious metals, for the winners – those who demonstrate amazing speed by running 26.2 miles in 2 hours. Then there are the precious medals which go to those who slog it out side by side in 6 hours. Both types of athletes deserve some applause, but there is one key difference… the purpose behind the run.
I had a lot of fun running the New York marathon with my brothers Jeff and Brad, but that was not the reason I signed up. Multiple Myeloma needs a cure, and a cure needs money for research. My brother Jeff has battled myeloma for three and half years to get to remission, and I am committed to helping him lead a long and happy life. I will climb mountains on skates and run races with him until a cure is found. That’s my purpose.
The day before the race, running coach Tom Holland was speaking to the fundraising runners at the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation reception. When he asked the crowd for questions, I chimed in, “How much do you really have left when you feel like quitting?”
He smiled at the unusual question, but without hesitation he said, “Just enough.”
I thought those words perfectly summed up our Goad Warrior philosophy. You don’t stop until you get to the finish line, and it doesn’t really matter how long it takes. What matters is that you get there and you need “just enough” to do it.
It also mattered that our family and friends were waiting for us at mile 18 to give much-needed hugs. And it mattered that all of you gave your support, your dollars and your prayers to get us through yet another milestone on the way to a cure. With your help, we have raised $10,845 so far and the entire MMRF team raised over $350,000!
Precious means “rare and hard to find,” which accurately describes the determination my brother Jeff showed me in this marathon. The three finisher medals we received in the chilly Manhattan night air were not made of gold, silver or bronze… but they were precious medals indeed.
The donation page is still alive and every dollar counts if you still want to give. Thank you!
To run along side you guys across the finish line and see you finishing strong brought such joy and tears to my eyes. Way to go!
Thank you so much for being there, Faith! I wanted to come over and hug you and Peter but you yelled at me to finish! 🙂
It was an honor to experience the NYC marathon with David and Brad. ( I know Eric was rooting for us back home!)
Our support crew of Ramona, Julianna and Carol were wonderful beacons of comfort at mile 18 & 24. Because of our late wave start and fall back time change, we found ourselves finishing in the twilight of the day with lights and camera flashes all around us. What struck me the most besides our finish were the few fans that remained, still cheering us on in the quickly plunging cold and windy weather. They deserve a medal for their act of support:)
Until our next adventure…
a profound thank you to all!
Way to go Cousins! You are awesome. So great you can run it all together. Just need to convince Eric for next year! 🙂 If you keep a 4.5mph pace I would consider it.