By Junida Nicholas, November 6, 2014
It was a chilly fall day, the second day of my retirement. I wondered, “What am I going to do with the rest of my life?” I decided I would like to try to become healthier, and I would also like to do volunteer work.
Later, on a trip to the grocery store, just as I was leaving, I saw a brochure on the Avon 3-Day Breast Cancer Walk. I thought, “This is it. This encompasses the healthy aspect, plus it includes volunteering to raise money for breast cancer research. When the information packet arrived in the mail, I was so excited about the new adventure I was about to embark on.
The breast cancer walk was a three-day walk in which the participants walked twenty miles for each of the three days. We slept in tents outdoors, took showers in a large truck, and ate meals in a large tent.
Now mind you I was a newly retired, sedentary teacher, about to embark on an adventure I knew nothing about. The literature on the walk advised that the participants prepare themselves by walking one block at a time. Included was a weekly walk plan.
I started my training in February, walking along Lake Michigan. It was cold and beautiful on the lake. I was familiar with the Chicago lakefront in summer, but I had never experienced the icy waves of the lake in winter before.
The actual walk took us from Chicago, beginning at Soldier Field, to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and back. The return trip was led by the participating breast cancer survivors. They wore bright fuchsia tee-shirts. Arriving at Soldier Field, I was enveloped with a tremendous sense of pride and hope. Having completed a sixty-mile walk, I felt I could accomplish anything I put my mind to; but most of all, I had created memories that would last me a lifetime.