It's Raining Pink

Every October it "rains" pink all across the United States because October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. This year I joined up with my sister (who is an eleven year breast cancer survivor) and her friends from Tennessee and we participated in the three day walk in Atlanta, Georgia.

To describe this experience is difficult because it is so personal and heartfelt - and every year is more special than the last. As I was walking through Atlanta's convention center where all 3000 of us participants were staying, I found it amazing that for three days, there were 3000 different personalities, and yet we all co-existed with no problems, there were no fights, everyone was happy to be there and you could just feel the love and caring!! Seems like such a simple process. I wonder why this doesn't work on a day-to-day basis in real-life situations?

Breast Cancer Awareness Month!

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month! 1 in 8 women in the United States will develop invasive breast cancer in her lifetime.

This month is a very important month to my family and I. Breast Cancer has affected my family greatly in the last 10 years. My grandma is a breast cancer survivor, and my Aunt Dee passed away in July of 2010 after fighting a rare and currently incurable form of breast cancer for 5 years.

The Susan G. Komen for the Cure is the global leader in the breast cancer movement, having invested more than $1.9 billion since the foundation was started. Every year my grandma and her best friend from high school, who is also a breast cancer survivor, walk in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure in Denver, my mom and I walk in Lincoln, and my Uncle Jack, who was married to my Aunt Dee, continues her tradition of walking in the Race for the Cure.

Going to this race every year makes me realize how far we have come in Breast Cancer research, but also how far we still have to go to cure this disease. Without all the advancements that have been made in the last few years, my aunt would not have had those five extra years to do everything her and my uncle had always wanted to do, but never had time for.

Sources: http://www.breastcancer.org/symptoms/understand_bc/statistics.jsp

http://ww5.komen.org/AboutUs/AboutUs.html