My moment
This time last year I was standing right here.
Up a hill behind Dingboche in Nepal. Just a few km away from the base camp of Mt Everest. It was extremely windy and the gusts were estimated at 80 to 100 km/h. It was exhilarating and the moment when I finally acknowledged that I had come further than I ever imagined.
This was not a bucket list situation. It was not a dream that I had ever had. It was just the result of setting myself a simple open-ended goal of trying to have the best quality of life possible after my active treatment ended back in November 2013. There were a lot of little things that lead me along this path but it was really just the result of setting myself small goals, achieving those and looking for the next one.
There were some hurdles along the way. My first attempt at this particular goal ended before it had begun when the 2015 earthquake in Nepal happened just two hours after our flight left Brisbane. The second time cancer intervened and our trek almost did not happen. Just 2 weeks before we were to start, the leader of our trek was diagnosed with a second type of cancer (she had breast cancer in 2007).We still went but it was a difficult time knowing she was back in Brisbane undergoing surgery. Even though I made it all the way to Base Camp I felt disconnected, with my mind really with my friend back in Brisbane.
So, third time, and it all went like it should. There is my friend standing near the flags with the pink cap. I could fully appreciate just how far I had come since I finished treatment. Back then my first goal was walking for 10 minutes at a time on my treadmill. It was tough to do even that some days. Six months after treatment ended I took on a 10km Walk for Breast Cancer. I had never walked that far in one go even before bc!
But I did it and things just happened from there. A lot of my motivation was to raise as much money as I could for the Cancer Council. So, I guess my message is to just aim small and keep going. You never know how far that might get you and what opportunities might come your way. xxx
Up a hill behind Dingboche in Nepal. Just a few km away from the base camp of Mt Everest. It was extremely windy and the gusts were estimated at 80 to 100 km/h. It was exhilarating and the moment when I finally acknowledged that I had come further than I ever imagined.
This was not a bucket list situation. It was not a dream that I had ever had. It was just the result of setting myself a simple open-ended goal of trying to have the best quality of life possible after my active treatment ended back in November 2013. There were a lot of little things that lead me along this path but it was really just the result of setting myself small goals, achieving those and looking for the next one.
There were some hurdles along the way. My first attempt at this particular goal ended before it had begun when the 2015 earthquake in Nepal happened just two hours after our flight left Brisbane. The second time cancer intervened and our trek almost did not happen. Just 2 weeks before we were to start, the leader of our trek was diagnosed with a second type of cancer (she had breast cancer in 2007).We still went but it was a difficult time knowing she was back in Brisbane undergoing surgery. Even though I made it all the way to Base Camp I felt disconnected, with my mind really with my friend back in Brisbane.
So, third time, and it all went like it should. There is my friend standing near the flags with the pink cap. I could fully appreciate just how far I had come since I finished treatment. Back then my first goal was walking for 10 minutes at a time on my treadmill. It was tough to do even that some days. Six months after treatment ended I took on a 10km Walk for Breast Cancer. I had never walked that far in one go even before bc!
But I did it and things just happened from there. A lot of my motivation was to raise as much money as I could for the Cancer Council. So, I guess my message is to just aim small and keep going. You never know how far that might get you and what opportunities might come your way. xxx
