On January 23rd, 2011, my bestfriend lost his mother to cancer. I'm getting really tired of this disease as I think all of us are.

Aug 12th, 2010 - Trials on New Ovarian Cancer Test Show High Accuracy

Here's a 4,000 mile ride for cancer. A good group to support
www.texas4000.org

LIVESTRONG DAY - 10.2.2010

In 2006 my mother lost her 5 year battle with ovarian cancer. 3 or so months before her passing, her father (my grandfather died of cancer). My mothers brother (Grandfathers' son) was diagnosed with cancer during the same time. His surgery was successful, but shortly after my mother and grandfather passed, my uncles cancer resurfaced and took his life. This left my grandmother to mourn the loss of her husband of 70 years and her only two children. A burden I am grateful to not have any concept of.

Let me step back a little further. My mothers best friend retired in 2000. She had big plans. Trips (already booked), big aspirations, had it all laid out. One day shortly after she retired, her and my mother were taking a hike and her friend felt a pain in her side and to be safe went to have it checked out. She never left the hospital again except to go home to die in her home. It took 7 months for the cancer to widdle her away to nothing. It was my first witness of cancer and severely painful to see someone go through. Shortly after her passing, my mother decided to be safe and get check out and behold, ovarian cancer.

When my mom told me she had cancer, I had also recently received news of my grandfathers. I remember going to my friends house, sitting on the back porch and thinking it was possible that I would lose the two most important people in my life at the same time. I do believe in being positive, so I did the best I could to believe that would not happen. The next few years I truly believed they would overcome.

They both fought bravely and with great integrity.

Since 2006 my life has drastically changed. My mother and I shared a very strong bond. We both believed we had greatly underachieved in our lives and struggled with the weight of our regrets. We spent literally hundreds of hours discussing it. It wasn't so much that we had tried and failed, the issue was we had never tried, afraid of failing and believing against ourselves. It was also not with the idea that we were going to accomplish anything. It was with the idea that we had dare to dream, but lacked the belief in ourselves to seek it.

She spent all her life on the sidelines, I was doing the same. We both understood that the people surrounding us made our lives rich, but happiness could not be fully realized until we broke from the chains of self-doubt and believe for some we were not worthy of any aspirations.

When my mother passed away, the life I was leading was no longer an option for me. It had simply run its' course and I tried to completely changed direction in life to honor her, but more importantly, to believe in me.

I know most everyone in the the world has their own personal stories of how cancer or other diseases have affected their lives. There are many, many stories very similar to mine as well as much, much worse. You may share opinions similar to opinions I have had. I cannot make a difference, so much money given to fight cancer is wasted. They are not even looking to cure it, because the money is not in the cure. I have had thoughts like that most of my life, but I also believe that it simply feels better to try.

I am grateful for Lance Armstrong. I am not here to debate steroids or even his cycling career, I don't care. I am here to tell you the inspiration he was to my mother. I believe Lances' fight inspired my mother to live longer than expected and thrive during those years. I would ride my bike along side her in the wichita mountains of Oklahoma with her defiantly and loudly fighting her cancer. He helped give her strength. That's enough for me to be thankful of his inspiration he had on my mother.

I have started a LIVESTRONG ARMY in Austin, TX. You can be a part of it with me from anywhere. I will also be riding and walking as many events for cancer every year and I will be raising money for cancer. I know it is not much, but maybe some where down the road I will find the strength it takes to dream the bigger dream. Maybe you will help me realize it.

I will be posting links to articles, ways to help, other peoples stories who would like to share on this page and hopefully we can make some small difference to someone down the road.

Take care,
Robert