Sweet (Hot) Victory

A year ago, I had planned to join Mark on a trip to San Diego where he was going to run the Rock 'N Roll Marathon for the Leukemia Society's Team in Training in my honor. Things did not work out that way. I was hospitalized once again for relapsed leukemia, and Mark went to California without me.

Yesterday, I sat in the stands at Brown University Stadium cheering for Mark as he ran the 1500 and 800 meter races in the Rhode Island State Meet. A year had come and gone, and I was miraculously still among the living. Among the living and broiling in 90 degree heat, covered with copious amounts of sunscreen and shaded by two umbrellas. The sun is anathema to me, as it is known to trigger graft versus host disease, something I strenuously avoid. Mark placed second in the 1500m with a personal best time of 3:57. He really wanted a state title though, and that came down to the 800m which had a talented field of of 5 runners in the 1:57 range. In a race that was harrowing to watch, Mark pulled ahead in the final 100 meters to win in 1:56.2.

This was a sweet victory, considering what's happened between last June and this. Here's a shot of my State Champion receiving his blue ribbon. Life is good. Hard, but good.