THON IS TOMORROW

Lately I've been super self-focused. Wondering about my body's signals, when baby will come. Thinking about how my lower back hurts in my chair at work. And yesterday a little notification popped up on facebook. Holly. Oh, Holly, you always bring me back to earth. Holly asked how I was, and let me know she was thinking of me. Holly became a new mama herself this year, and was just checking in.

You know how everyone says cancer sucks? Holly knows the true meaning. Last year I posted about how proud I am that this beautiful sweet young woman beat leukemia (screw you cancer) and is happy and married and living her life. But that same beautiful woman lost her mom to a nasty fight with pancreatic cancer that ended too soon. And it's not fair. It reminds me how precious life is and how important philanthropies like THON are.

We always say about THON, "THIS is what we mean when we say We Are Penn State". But oh, it's so much more. To me, this is what we mean when we say THON isfamily. It means that through facebook and emails I've kept in touch with the same "kid, now a grown up, who inspired me to dance for 48 hours. It means that little Clay's mom, whose first THON was when I was chair back in my senior year, commented recently on a sorority sister's facebook photo saying how they missed us. THON creates families, it creates a forever tie to this amazing fundraising cause. I'm so thankful for that. You can't explain THON. You can try to share it, but unless you were a part of it, you just can't get it. Maybe it's why THON means family. Because once you're a part of it, you're a part of it forever.

I remember that first year after graduation. I shed tears not only for the kids who lost their battles, and joyous ones for the money raised, but also because I felt I left a part of me at PSU with THON, and beig a graduated senior meant no more THON for me. Years later, I can look back and see that THON will forever be part of my life, that I can help by donating, and that the legacy lives on.

So here's my shameless plug. GO DONATE. HELP KIDS FIGHT CANCER. No child deserves to lose their battle- and our hope is that one day we won't have THON, because there will be no more battles.

CLICK HERE TO DONATE

And in case you are wondering, or want a quick cry, here's a video.

PS Dear Baby Walls, if you do happen to show up on THON weekend that's just fine with us. :)