Relay for Life, Update on Margie

Last week I went to Relay for life. I had wanted to go for the last few years to support my Mom's cousin, Barb, and her fight against a rare blood cancer, Polycythmia Ruba Vera, PV for short. She was diagnosed about 9 years ago and has had to take Chemo in a pill form weekly for most of that time. Evil disease! Because of this cancer she has had other cancers and stokes. She is a miracle. Barb, I love you and am so glad to have gotten the chance to know you! You are very special! I pray for you and think about you often.

This year I actually made it. It's a little ironic that now we live further away, than in the past years, but this is the year I made it. But the kids are getting bigger and it worked with Mark's work schedule.

I think that I was blessed just to be there. I was going to go to "visit" Barb, but ended up staying until about 11pm or so. First of all I got to spend the night visiting and walking with my great Aunt Marge. It was great to chat and reconnect. I love you Aunt Marge. You are a wonderful, Godly women filled with faith, joy and love.
Then I got to be "adopted" by their team and join them in their walking. I also took some time to walk around by myself to reflect and pray for Margie. It was also there that I got bad news about Margie's liver biopsy results. I felt like crying. I think God did that on purpose. To be with Aunt Marge and Barb after receiving that news. They had already started to pray for Margie because of my last post about her and my facebook post, but it became even more real when they discovered they knew who she was through different connections. Life's connections can be amazing.

During the evening everyone had a chance to buy luminaries for $5 each. I bought two. One for Barb and one for Margie. Luminaries are white paper bags that you can decorate with a persons name that you are remembering or honouring. You can also add stickers, stamps or be creative with the felts. For me is was a time to think about each person and pray for them. It was a meaningful activity for me. Once you were done decorating, a volunteer would put a plastic bag around your bag (for weather and such) and a piece of wood with a tea light inside to secure the light. Then you could give your bags to the volunteers or you could take it to it's spot on your own. They were all lined up around the track (at Rotary stadium), in alphabetical order. I decided to deliver them myself. As I walked around the track, putting them in the right places, I read the names on some of the other bags. And I recognized a few other names. Rachel Barkey, a cousin of a friend, who passed away, and Julie Falk, another lady from Church, who is fighting again. Looking at all the luminaries, you see and remember again all the people that this awful disease has touched. So many people. And not just the people with the disease but their friends and family too. When you think about the numbers, it's shocking! There is also a lady at my parents church (my Church growing up) who only has a couple weeks left, if that, becuse of cancer. It is so hard to think of her family without her. Death, disease and dying are really hard.

And then there is HOPE.



After it was dark enough, at about 10:30pm, they started to light all the luminaries. Up on the hill they lined luminaries up to spell out the word HOPE. It was beautiful. Walking around all the lit luminaries was beautiful, sad, somber, hopeful and inspiring. We took one walk as a team, and talked about different people whose names were on the bags. I also re-met Feather, an amazing lady who has beaten cancer more than once. She is full of life, and joy and I can tell she is a fighter.

As Aunt Marge said, thank goodness we have the good things to look forward to. I am so excited that four of my cousins are pregnant right now (from two side of the family), and two of Mark's. So we can look forward to the joys of birth. I am so excited to meet these wonderful little beings that God has created! Little miracles, big miracles. Joy in life.

At the end you are allowed to take your luminaries with you. I took the one I made for Margie when I left and can't wait to pass it on to her.

Margie Update:
Margie had her left led amputated at mid-thigh. She has started physio, and I think will be starting chemo soon. Please continue to pray for healing for her and for the chemo to work and get rid of the cancer. They did find cancer in her liver as well. There is a facebook page with updates, well wishes and prayers. There are almost 500 people, and I know many churches are praying too. Thank you for your prayers. We are praying for you, Margie!


Sorry this pictures aren't great quality. Our camera isn't working, so I took them with my iphone.

After decorating.



Putting the luminaries in place.




Luminaries from Aunt Marge, and from Me for Barb.




Feather's luminary for Julie.




The luminary I made for Margie (Left), Feather's luminary for Margie (Right)