Sooo...it's the Wednesday before the race. And actually, for the Doomsday board, it starts tonight. Almost all of us are in town and we're wanting to gather for one last brainstorming session before the actual storm hits.
As many of you know, we make at least one donation from the proceeds of every race towards various causes that are close to our hearts. The last few years, we've made donations to an organization working in South Sudan that provides food to schools in the area. And, in turn, those schools use that food to give the students their only meals. In a country torn by civil war, there is a man-made famine that has been developing for years and the kids have no choice in their situation. Yet, there they are - starving to death. I have sat with them on my lap, sang songs with them, felt their scars, helped them haul water, and learned their names. They're not just sad stories in a TV special or an Instagram feed. Their names are Beatrice and Jennifer.
So why that wild left turn in my thoughts? It's because I'm TIRED!!! One of the reasons that East Africa is so dear to our hearts is because many of us have been there multiple times and I just got back a few weeks ago. Jet lag and putting on a relay back to back is no joke!
A few days ago when I began to max out, physically and psychologically, I was questioning why we even put on this race. And then I happened across a picture on my phone of my son with some friends he made on our most recent trip to Uganda. It's because people I love an ocean away are suffering.
While our singular donation may not do more than pay for one day's worth of meals or one batch of HIV medication for children in another care program we have donated to, I have to think that it matters to those that received it. It matters to the Beatrices and Jennifers of the world whose lives are jammed into situations and impossible corners they never asked to be in. It matters when we get to have the most amazing discussions with runners at the Start Line of our races and find that their hearts are turned in the same direction. It matters when we give of ourselves, even a little...and are changed.
Thank you for running with us and for something bigger than yourself!