Mentoring e-Mail # 8

Happy New Year, everyone!

It is I, your Artful Mentor, once again, faithfully writing my Tuesday message to you. You are thinking “Why couldn’t my Artful Mentor be less faithful, just for one crummy week?” But ‘tis not to be, at least not in 2008. Perhaps you will have better luck in 2009, but I don’t think I would count on that were I you. I am already noting in my New Years resolutions: “faithfully email my unfortunate mentees every week.”

I have only one main reminder for you – the silent auction in a few weeks. Jen’s email reminded you of the particulars today, so I will not needlessly repeat that. But I do have a request of you: please e-mail what items you have garnished for the silent auction. I will do two things with this list:

1. I will let Nicki, Mentor Captain Extraordinaire, know what these are so that the owners of Big Al’s will know what they will have to provide space for.

2. I will note them on a page on my blog that you can use, if you wish, to let friends and family know about all of the fantastic items to be bid on at the fabulous TNT Silent Auction.

So just let me know how you are doing with it. And if there is anything else you need from me, let me know. I will be out of town for a couple of days, and will not be at training this Saturday. As always, let the coaches know if you won’t be there.

I want to close with a mission moment. It is a bit long but will only take you a few minutes to read. It is a reminder of why we do this, and that as hard as it can be at times to train for a marathon, others can have it far tougher. This is written by a man named Ted, who is a survivor and a TNT participant. Unlike me, he has had numerous ongoing and lasting side effects from his chemotherapy experience. As I read this, it reminds me that we are not only searching for cures; we are searching for humane cures that don’t ruin the health of cancer victims. It also reminds me, once again, how fortunate I was and am to get through chemo with no apparent lasting effects, at least so far.

Ted’s words: “I am a poster boy for side effects. I have severe peripheral neuropathy in my feet. It makes walking painful. Walking downhill is excruciating. Since my toes are numb mostly, I have very poor balance and have to be very careful while training. Other side effects I have experienced are loss of teeth, no impact to training, but it is a good way to lose weight. Loss of weight might have a positive impact on my riding. I thought I had thyroid failure a couple of weeks ago, but now they think it might be adrenal failure, which is a common side effect also. This potentially fatal condition prevented me from training for the Lavaman Tri, may have caused a severe drug reaction a couple of months ago and may keep me from working for a while. I have orthostatic hypotension, and that limits my exertion levels, and I have to be very careful when I stop. I have had a bike accident caused by a narcotic I was taking. This was more than 8 hours after taking the medicine.”

“I lost a great deal of weight from the chemo, most of it muscle mass, and that has had a tremendous effect on my training. I am usually the slowest weakest person on the team now. One of the problems with side effects is that everyone gets different ones, even if the treatment is identical. I know that my doctors are watching for all sorts of things I don't know about, and they are very responsive if I have a problem. All that being said, in spite of all the side effects, I have and will continue to do TNT events. My life is enriched by participating in them, and by the friendships I have formed. I feel like I am one of the happiest people around, and I am truly blessed in my life by all sorts of wonderful things. Side effects represent a challenge to me. Some times I get tired and depressed, but normally I look toward all the blessings and I am so thankful. The primary blessing is to still be alive with my wonderful family, planning for the future in spite of all that has or might happen.”

I hope everyone has a great New Years and comes out in 2009 ready to kick some butt with fund-raising and training!

GO TEAM!
Art