`ike loa is Hawaiian and means “to know very well indeed, knowledgeable, versed, wise” and this blog is a journal of my experiences and wisdom gleamed from those experiences. And lots of wisdom has been gleaned… sometimes long after the experience.Life is full of retrospection and growth. We grow from our relationships, our jobs, and our struggles. Everyone and every experience further shapes our being. Loftier goals can bring greater rewards but also result in spectacular failures. And through those failures we achieve the deepest growth.
This year, my mind and body was ready to face new challenges. So for 2011-2012 I have joined the TNT San Diego IronTeam New Zealand as a participant. New Zealand is a full Ironman distance triathlon — 2.4 miles for the swim, 112 miles for the bike, and 26.2 miles for the run — and training will be very challenging and very long.
I have never attempted a full Ironman distance race before. I have completed two half-ironman events, Vineman in 2006 and again in 2009. With the team I know that I will be prepared and will be able to complete the full Ironman race.
Balancing training, a more than full time job, and two kids is going to be an uphill battle for me. But the challenge that I face is nothing compared to those that face the challenge of facing and fighting and living with blood-related cancers. Cancer just doesn’t affect one person — it affects entire families, friends, and even communities. While it is tragic that anyone has to face cancer, knowing that 5000 children won’t make it through this year is a bitter stab through the heart. I can only grab and hold my own children tighter!
The reward of life is the journey itself. For many of us, we don’t give much thought of the day to day and instead we look to the very end, to the finish. We worry about what the end will be like and how long away it will be and plan for something that seems remote and distant. But for many others the journey of surviving a single day is their ultimate reward. It is for those whom I am struggling for this year. Those whose lives I want to bring a sense of future. Those are who I am volunteering my time, energy, and physical endurance to find the cure…
Join me and help me and my teammates with our cause.
Go Team!
