Inspiring stories…
I say this every year, and I know it’s true…I am so lucky to run with an incredible group of people. Each runner brings a unique experience. Each runner has an inspiring story. And each Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge runner is doing some amazing work. Here’s part 1 of Hilary Hall’s ‘Why I Run’ story.
01.06.96
Exactly 16 years ago at this time, I sat in a patient room at the Children’s Hospital of Buffalo. No, I was not in one of those huge open areas where you are granted privacy in the form of a curtain. I was in a full-blown private patient room complete with multiple chairs to accommodate my family and any visiting MDs. The special room was actually the third red flag of the day, that clued me in to the fact that something was very, very wrong.
Earning a spot in the ER patient room…
Earlier in the morning, I found myself at my regular figure skating lessons with my coach, Paddy (one of the most caring and observant people I know). We were working on two particular jumps without much progress. I remember continuing to fall and with each progressive fall, it became increasingly harder to pull myself back up. Consequently, we ended the lesson early and proceeded to chat with my family that was looking on. “Maybe it’s jet-lag?” someone said. This was somewhat plausible since we just flew back from seeing my grandmother and cousins. Paddy recommended trying out Alka-Selzter’s new (at the time) cold medicine. Whether it was denial or shock, no one really wanted to acknowledge that cold medicine may not be enough this time.
Red Flag #1
Fast forward to the early evening. After a visit to my pediatrician’s office and the phlebotomist for a quick blood draw, we returned home. Although it was only a couple hours, it felt like weeks had passed before my parents’ received a call from my pediatrician. “Go to the Children’s ER. I’ll let them know you’re coming.” My parents emerged from the study where they had been scavenging for information on my potential ailment since we left the pediatrician’s office. “Hil, Dr. Vaughan called. He wants us to go to the hospital.” Definite Red flag!
Red Flag #2
My father drove my mother and me to Children’s while my uncle watched my brother, who was only 9 at the time. As we walked up to the desk in the ER, I remember looking around at the other kids waiting. Some looked like they had been there for hours. I had already spent the majority of the day sitting around, waiting. “Sheesh,” I thought, “no more waiting!” Anyone who has visited the ER knows that the problem with emergency rooms is that it is a giant catch 22- the longer your wait-time, the less sick you are, and vise versa. You don’t want to be sick enough to be pumped to the front of the line without a wait. In this case, we didn’t wait. The woman at the check-in desk kindly said, “we’re expecting you.” I was triaged before all of the kids that had been waiting for hours, before the kids with bloody wounds, and even before the kid that came in on a stretcher. That’s when I said to myself, “Shit! I’m really sick.” (Huge) Red Flag!
Read more on Hilary’s awesome blog http://runningbecausecancerstinks.blogspot.com/
