A sad heart bouyed by a world of support

It's been a rather difficult month in my journey as more sadness has enveloped my family.  My maternal grandmother passed away two weeks ago in the wee hours.  Thankfully I was able to arrive on the mainland in time to see her prior to her passing.  Our entire family gathered in the hospice and were there for her final hours.  This is the third passing in my family since we arrived on the island in August - it has been a rough 9 months in that regard.

My desire to push forward with the Honu race was faltering as I mourned and tried to put myself together prior to flying home.  I had told my dad and Justin that I was seriously considering not competing in June.  I even started looking for another 70.3 race to do later in the season as I didn't want to give up on my goal, just delay it until I could gather myself again.

I arrived back at work to find a care package from my co-workers for my race weekend.  They also gathered a donation for my cause as well.  It was so very thoughtful of them and perhaps just what I needed to bolster my resolve.

Now I am down to 10 days until the race and I'm nervous.  I still know that I can finish the race however it may be slow.  My main concern is my mental strength.  I have been utterly exhausted and battling headaches since returning to Hawai'i.  Perhaps the race and the weekend on the Big Island are just what I need.

On an exciting note, the donations have almost reach $1500!  I am contemplating doing another race in the fall and continuing my campaign to raise $7030.  We'll see how the next few weeks pan out.  Thanks again to all of my very generous friends and family - much love to you all!