Belated posting on the game the other night...which was incredible. I was lucky enough to get tickets on very short notice from a BC friend who interned for the Sox back in the day (thanks again Johnny) - and he came up big for us; incredible Pavilion Club seats with a great view of the game. I met up with my friend Scott, another BC comrade, at 6:30 and we headed in for some dinner and first pitch...It was really cool to see Lester come out of the bullpen and take the mound, and the fans were incredible. He pitched a great game, 2 hits, 1 run, 7 complete, but was still facing a loss when he left the game...all the Red Sox fans reading this know the rest, and yes we stayed until the bitter end. The ending was really spectacular - total playoff atmosphere in Fenway and Lowell's HR sent the place into hysterics...you almost felt bad for those poor souls who decided to leave at the end of 8 - no faith.
It was a great game and a really special night for me; to see a guy pitching who had been through much of the same process as me was really nice, and the welcome he got from the Fenway Faithful was inspiring. As a fan you loved the game, the comeback, everything, but as a cancer patient there was something a little more special, a little more meaningful. I walked out proud to be a Red Sox fan and proud to be facing and beating cancer and ready to move on with my life.
I'm sure there were patients and families across the country watching that performance who may not be so lucky, who may have lost loved ones to the disease, or who are not physically able to do the things that I am...that's why after all I have been through I continue to count myself as tremendously lucky; lucky Kristina saw a lump on my neck, lucky to be young and healthy, lucky to have good medical care, lucky to have tolerated treatment so well, lucky to have such wonderful friends and family, lucky to be ready to move on. I never thought "why me?", but when you go to a place like Dana Farber and see all the people there who are really struggling you think, "why not me?" No, I never expected to have cancer at 28 years old, but I think it has made me a better person, has forced me to rethink things, and has dramatically altered my perspective on life, health, and mortality.
So, as I stare down the barrel of radiation and look forward to the rest of my life I count my blessings and stand ready to do what I can in the future to help others who may not be as lucky as I am.
It was a great game and a really special night for me; to see a guy pitching who had been through much of the same process as me was really nice, and the welcome he got from the Fenway Faithful was inspiring. As a fan you loved the game, the comeback, everything, but as a cancer patient there was something a little more special, a little more meaningful. I walked out proud to be a Red Sox fan and proud to be facing and beating cancer and ready to move on with my life.
I'm sure there were patients and families across the country watching that performance who may not be so lucky, who may have lost loved ones to the disease, or who are not physically able to do the things that I am...that's why after all I have been through I continue to count myself as tremendously lucky; lucky Kristina saw a lump on my neck, lucky to be young and healthy, lucky to have good medical care, lucky to have tolerated treatment so well, lucky to have such wonderful friends and family, lucky to be ready to move on. I never thought "why me?", but when you go to a place like Dana Farber and see all the people there who are really struggling you think, "why not me?" No, I never expected to have cancer at 28 years old, but I think it has made me a better person, has forced me to rethink things, and has dramatically altered my perspective on life, health, and mortality.
So, as I stare down the barrel of radiation and look forward to the rest of my life I count my blessings and stand ready to do what I can in the future to help others who may not be as lucky as I am.
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