Where do I begin? I am just home from the inaugural Livestrong Summit held in Austin, Texas, and in the past three days I have undergone more than it appeared possible to do in a mere seventy two hours. I have experienced inspiration and humility and awe, often in chunks that seemed too large to be swallowed in one piece. Many of the people I have met over this weekend just past made me absolutely thrilled to be a part of this group. I listened to amazing tales of strength, perseverance, and hope, all coming from everyday people very much like myself. These people and I all shared a common bond, which is that we have all experienced cancer in one of its' myriad forms. Another thing we had in common is that not one of us has surrendered to this disease.
During the convention I listened to accounts from other survivors which left me with a feeling of wonder, and often the sensation I experienced was incredulity. There was the man that refused to give up when told he only had months to live, ultimately consulting eight doctors before finally talking to a ninth doctor that finally offered a solution. There was the woman who practically had to beg her doctor to do a biopsy of a lump in her breast, after being told not to worry, that she was too young to have breast cancer. I had thought a biopsy was done as a matter of course, so little do I know. Then, there was the man with whom I had dinner on Saturday night, that mentioned during our conversation that he had been undergoing chemotherapy now for three years, and had in fact experienced his last chemo session just before leaving for the summit. These are only a small portion of the personal encounters with cancer shared with me in Austin, but they represent the kind of attitude and sense of purpose present in every person with whom I talked. The word 'surrender' was simply not in these people's vocabulary.
Even more inspiring were the experiences shared by those people that shoulder so much of the burden borne by a cancer patient, the caregivers. These are people that make room in lives already filled with families and careers, and face the physical and spiritual challenges that come from giving care and goodness to someone they love. The value of the support provided by these people is incalculable, and often their lives are forever transformed by the experience. Caregivers enable a cancer survivor to face their disease with the knowledge that they are not alone. They supply love and give of themselves so unselfishly that they provide choices when often it seems there are no choices left, and when the person in their care can no longer remain in this world, they will hold their hand and enable them to face their journey into the next world with comfort and dignity. Given a choice between being a survivor or being a caregiver, I believe I would choose to be a survivor. I am not sure I would have the strength to be a caregiver.
The Summit...
Kind of a pilgrimage for me, a chance to actually see Lance Armstrong in the flesh. This guy is the first thing I thought of when informed that I have cancer. As the summit was held in Texas, the trip alone was worth taking for a Michigan boy in mid October. Shirt sleeve weather all weekend, and I left with a knowledge that folks in Texas sure do love their air conditioning! Many people would walk to the hall in their shirts and put their jacket on upon entering the exhibition hall. Check in was a breeze. Give your name and you were handed a tote filled with information and supplies for the weekend, along with an ID badge. Then you got to wander around and introduce yourself to folks and share stories. Tables were set up with good things to drink and all kinds of munchies, which helped a great deal when you had been up since four AM and trotting through airports trying not to miss your flight. Happily, I met a lady who lived in Austin, and got the scoop on a couple of good places to eat while in town.
At three o'clock we all headed into the exhibition hall for the opening session, where after the opening ceremony we heard first from Lance himself. The man challenged us to actually work during the summit, to try and see just what we could accomplish. Next up were two very good speakers. Dr. Antonia Novella, our first female Surgeon General here in the U. S. Dr. Novella talked about "The Power of Cancer Survivors as Advocates."
