Some final thoughts

Yesterday was my last-and longest – ride. I actually rode a bit more slowly than my previous rides. Recently my New Jersey pastor, Jessica, gave a sermon recently about “noticing”.

So on my final ride, I was noticing:

-Planters on porches, changing from summer flowers to fall mums

-Halloween decorations

-Puddles of standing water, left over from last weekend’s storms

-Beach residences with shades drawn, and no cars in the driveway, owners probably gone until the spring

-Fewer cars on every road

-shorter hours for retail establishments

-some stores shuttered permanently

-beach access still restricted

I’ve been so inspired by my donors’ generosity.

So many of you have been affected directly or indirectly by a cancer diagnosis.

I’ve also been inspired by reading the posts of other riders around the country.

Pastor Jess also gave a sermon this month about “Thanks”-

I want to be sure to express my thanks to all of you for your donations and encouragement.

I thank Patty Whitehouse for introducing me to the GCC community. And I thank Amy Shields for opening my eyes to the difficult choices that parents have to make after receiving such a diagnosis.

I thank the other riders for their pictures, their posts of their success, as well as their frustrations and injuries, and heartwarming stories. ❤️

Thanks to the doctors, the nurses, and everyone on cancer care teams.🥰

I feel gratitude and admiration for the scientists and researchers who work every day to discover new treatments.👏

And thanks to the families of these kids who shared their stories and their medical and emotional journeys. I continue to keep them in my thoughts and prayers. I’ve been thinking this month especially about Sully Shields from Annapolis, Zora from Indiana, and Madison from Ohio. I am reminded daily of one of our little ambassadors, 4 year old Charlotte. Her picture/story is still on my refrigerator. ❤️

We WILL find better treatments for these kids.

As we say at The Great Cycle Challenge-“children should be living life, not fighting for it.”

Oh, the powerful ocean

I returned to Delaware to try to get my miles in by riding in a flat area, with decent bike lanes.

Mother nature had other plans. We experienced a powerful nor’easter along the East Coast. Strong winds and pounding rain have done great damage to our beautiful beaches.

I’ve been forced to ride indoors at a local gym. 😖That is hardly what I had in mind for this month.

But circumstances change and we have to adapt.

All this talk about flooding, has caused me to think of these families and these kids for whom I ride. They must be flooded with emotion when they receive such a diagnosis. They are flooded with information which they have to swim through to make the best choices they can for their child. I imagine sometimes they feel they are drowning in it all. And I think of the scientists and researchers who spend their days trying to discover new and better treatments. They also may be flooded with new data, failed experiments and threats of less funding.

Today, as the winds have gotten calmer and the sea is less threatening, I sent a prayer of hope to all of those involved in this important work. Wishing a period of calm for the kids, their families, their caregivers and the researchers.❤️

Against the wind

As I was riding today, I was thinking about this old song from the 1980s. I was really riding against the wind. There were several times when I felt the wind gust actually blowing me and my bike sideways . Here in Delaware we are experiencing what is called a nor’easter. The winds are significant I am afraid it is going to erode our already vulnerable coastline. There’s not much rain – but the winds push the water into streams and canals. There is significant flooding in low lying areas.

I think about the families I am riding for. There must be days when they are flooded with emotion and overwhelmed with decision-making. I imagine there are days when they feel “underwater “.

I can only hope that the funds raised this month will help scientists discover better options for the kids and their families.

So these last days of September, I think about Sully, Zora, Madison (in Ohio) and our ambassador kids, Charlotte and Kai. They are so brave and strong.

Rear view mirror

Today I did something that I don’t usually do regarding my ride-I forgot my rearview mirror. Is attached to my sunglasses and it was very cloudy today so I didn’t think I needed them. But I did.

Jimbro, my brother from another mother, was insistent that I use that mirror every time I ride. I hate to admit it, but he was right.

So I started thinking about looking back…

Today our middle son turned 44. How could that be true? I remember the morning he arrived. I was terrified – his older brother’s arrival was “non-textbook.” Jeff arrived at 7:10 AM. (By the way, 710 is the address of my childhood home.)

I thought it was a good omen, and it was. Jeff was a big, -9 lb-happy baby. His preschool teachers told us about his remarkable intellect. Like many parents of our age, we kind of thought he was he exceptional. 🙄Turns out, he was/is.

He has impressed us with his abilities to create an improve physical structures. And more so, his affability to create a sustain great friendships.

So back to the mirror.. yes, it’s important to look back. When we are riding our bicycles, it is really important to look ahead, too.-is someone backing out of the driveway? Will that person who has their uncontrolled dog on a retractable leash be able to control them when I try to pass? Will those people in front of me, who have earbuds blocking their sounds, be able to hear my bell or my words of warning that I want to pass?

As a metaphor, it’s important to look back on our lives-when was Jeff a baby? How did he grow? One of my fondest photos is one of he and Chris as Batman and Robin and their little costumes and their rubber boots .❤️. It is important to look ahead – what does life hold for he and Erin? For each of us??

What does life hold for these families that we ride for? How do they manage the looking back and the looking forward while managing the day- to- day? It has to be a difficult juggle.❤️‍🩹

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I am reminded of the song from Fiddler on the Roof-

sunrise, sunset….quickly go the years…❤️

Nurses

This week as I’ve been riding, I’ve been thinking about nurses and their critical role in healing. We visited our “bonus siblings “, Jim and Helene in their rehab journey. Helene is a nurse and has high standards for care. She has had nothing but compliments about the staff that is caring for Jim and her. We are so grateful for their care.

We took my parents for their wellness visit. The intake nurse kept them laughing, and they kept her laughing. She threatened to take away my mom‘s power wheelchair.😆Laughing was good medicine in itself.

Our beloved daughter-in-law is a nurse and so is her mom. They’ve cared for many others and continue to do so.

Like teachers, nurses can be the unsung heroes in many people’s stories. Of course they are technically competent-checking blood pressure, inserting IVs, emptying bed pans. But they also encourage, laugh, listen, and know when to be quiet.

I imagine that nurses have quite an important role in caring for the children for whom we ride. Researchers and doctors have a critical role. But the day-to-day treatments are administered by nurses. Today I am riding for them and all that they do to care for these children and comfort their families..Thank you!

Grandparents

This week, as we approach Grandparents Day on Sunday, I’ve been thinking about grandparents and grandchildren. We called my maternal grandparents MomMom and PopPop. Our paternal grandmother‘s nickname was Nan.

The siblings and I have a variety of memories of each of them. MomMom was a seamstress. I remember women coming to the house to have her “take in” a dress or “take up” a hem. She made slip covers and draperies. She even had one of those dress forms on a stand. Pop Pop was an electrician by trade and a true tinkerer. He loved to fix just about anything and he created things.

We loved staying overnight at their house. We played a lot of board games and card games.

Nan was famous for her fruitcake-a recipe in her handwriting that I recently discovered.

I think about how my parents and Doug‘s parents grandparented our boys. They each had their own style and own gifts to share with them.

And now as Doug and I are grandparents, we navigate the complexities of grandparenting in these times. It is such a joy. I often tell people that grandparenting is “delicious “.

I picture each grandchild in my mind, as I am riding. And I am especially thinking of our Charlotte this month. 😘 She is a fascinating four year-old, full of spunk and love. One of the child ambassadors for the Great Cycle Challenge is also a four-year-old girl named Charlotte. She has been bravely fighting B Cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia since September 2024. She is currently in maintenance treatment, which includes both daily and weekly oral chemo medications and a lumbar puncture and port chemo every three months. She and her family have been through a lot. So I picture her face and our Charlotte’s face as I ride. And I continue to pray for these researchers to come up with better solutions for these families..❤️

Sunrise, Sunset…

This week, as I have been riding, I have this song in my head. As I remember it, it is from “fiddler on the roof “.?

The kids are heading back to school.-photos on the front porch being taken, with or without the pets, new backpacks, sharpened pencils, new teachers, new start times 😁. How could we have a granddaughter starting high school? Sunrise, sunset…

As I ride for these children and their families, I imagine many of them struggle with the passing of time. When life is consumed by doctor appointments, lab results, treatments, and medication, it is hard to see the positive.

All of us who ride for this cause hope and pray that scientists can discover better solutions for the kids and their families.

Sunrise, Sunset

Song by Perry Como

Lyrics

Is this the little girl I carried

Is this the little boy at play?

I don't remember growing older

When did they?

When did she get to be a beauty

When did he grow to be so tall?

Wasn't it yesterday that they were small?

Sunrise, sunset

Sunrise, sunset

Swiftly flow the days

Seedlings turn overnight to sunflowers

Blossoming even as they gaze

Sunrise, sunset

Sunrise, sunset

Swiftly fly the years

One season following another

Laden with happiness and tears

Week of August 23-30

This week, during every ride, (practicing for the real thing which started yesterday) I thought about teachers. Many of them already started, preparing their classrooms, buying supplies, and creating interesting lessons for their new students. Teaching these days is not easy. There are multiple pressures from administrators, parents and the community. Sometimes we forget that teachers are people. They are caring for their own families, young and old, they have to pay their bills, drive their own children to after-school activities, prepare meals and squeeze in some sleep. They often work on school activities late into the evening.

I think of my own schooling, and the many teachers that shaped my life. In both elementary school and high school there were teachers that went the extra mile to increase my confidence and help me to grow. As a teacher myself long ago, I hope I inspired my students.

I am grateful to the teachers that supported and nurtured our three boys and now help our five grand grandchildren.

I wish for each administrator, teacher, teacher aide, cafeteria-worker, janitor, and every student a positive and supportive school year.

Let’s think about how these kids we are riding for are affected-not only physically but socially. Their schooling is no doubt complicated by their cancer treatment treatments.

Praying for better treatments and solutions for the kids and their families.

Riding this week. August 16-23

I’m going to make an attempt to blog about my cycling this year. I did not get the writing genes that my sister and brother have- they are amazing-but I’ll try.

All this week, while riding, I’ve thought about my two dear friends, Jim and Helene. Jim is my “brother from another mother “ Helene is an additional “sister” to me.

They are major cyclists-clocking more miles than I could imagine. I will not post how many miles they’ve ridden-I’m sure I would get that wrong. But it’s impressive. They ride in their NJ neighborhood, in Florida, in Delaware. They always meet new people along the way.

Unfortunately this week Jim has had some neck surgery that’s become more complicated than anticipated. They have had to sideline their cycling for now. Jim is probably the most resilient person I know. After each of his many surgeries, he keeps working hard and bouncing back. He continues to have a great attitude and a terrific sense of humor. Helene is always by his side, either cycling or at a hospital or doctor appointment. They are quite the team!

Over the years they have cared for many family members and friends, (including my own mother and stepdad ) often quietly, behind the scenes.

So this week as I was riding 15 to 20 miles each day, I thought about Jim and Helene and prayed for their continued resilience and healing. They inspire each of us to be the best we can be.

Just like the kids that we are riding for, they are determined and resilient.