Sunday, February 17, 2013

WILL YOU JOIN US?

I have cheered on my friend Heather as she has been riding her bike for her daughter Samantha, and later in the memory of her. I have watched how important it is to her to ride for Children’s Hospital, the place that made it possible for her daughter to live.  Last year, her Courage Classic Team simply took off! They became one of the top riding team for Children’s Hospital. When a team raises over $50,000, they get to decide where the money will be allocated within the hospital. Summits for Samantha directly benefited the Mitochondrial Clinic and its’ patients. Heather and her team is quite the fundraising machine!

So, what has been my excuse for not riding? The unpredictability of Jacob’s day-to-day life. The feeling of never knowing when we will be thrown into a long hospital stay where everything of normalcy will be thrown to the wayside. The day-to-day busyness of simply taking care of my children, and all the other things in my life. Just the thought of finding time for a bike ride seemed impossible. The fact that I am truly scared of road biking is not to be forgotten. The fear of falling off the bike or having someone crash in to me and my bike is real.
Don’t take me wrong. I have been riding a bike on roads since I was a little kid. That’s how I transported myself as a kid back home. There were no parents driving me wherever I had to be. I jumped on my bike to get to the train station, to go to the store, and to get to my friend’s house. 
155 miles of biking over the course of 3 days in the Rocky Mountains is another story, especially when you don’t even have a bike, or a helmet for that matter. And did I mention no experience of road biking or training for something of this caliber?
But I do have a heart. I have a healthy heart that is beating for my boy Jacob. I will ride for the hospital, which makes Jacob’s life possible. I will ride for the hospital, which has saved his life several times. I will ride for the Mito Clinic, which figured out the mystery of Jacob’s mitochondrial disease. I will ride for the doctors who have become an integral part of our lives. I will ride in memory of Samantha. I will ride for all the hospital kids, who I have been honored to get to know. And I will ride for Jacob. Jacob who fights for his life every day, I will ride for him.
 

Will you join us?
Click on link to join the Summits for Samantha team:
http://www.couragetours.com/2013/team/sfs

Sincerely,
Maria

5 comments:

  1. Way to make me cry on a sunday night. haha. I would love to come and hand out energy bars somewhere along the road if you need somebody to do that!!! I am also one of the lucky kids who got to ride their bike everywhere, we didn't even have a train station. We took the bike to school, no parents would drive us. Ever. No excuses. (-:

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    Replies
    1. I would love to have you cheer us on!!! How are you all? We miss you here!

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  2. Adore you and welcome you with open arms to our team. It will mean so much! I promise :)

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    Replies
    1. I am sure it will be a great experience despite a very sore body :- I am very much looking forward to it!

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