Last night, we went to Central Park to participate in Cycle for Survival, a fundraiser for Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center for rare cancers. We have a close connection to this through one of our family members who is a survivor, so we were really excited to participate in person. Having never done it before, we didn’t know what to expect.

Imagine 200 stationary bikes all lined up in rows under a tent in Wollman Rink with loud music (the kind you like to dance to), facing a stage of Equinox cyclist instructors, a disco ball dangling from the center of the tent sending out sparkly vibes, and even some orange pompoms for cheering—are feeling the vibe? It was electric. And everyone was there because they were connected to someone who had a rare form of cancer. At the top of each hour someone got on stage and briefly shared their story—that’s when things got real.

As I got situated on the bike, the speaker up on stage was the father of a 19 year old boy who lost his battle just 120 days prior. How he got up there and spoke with such poise is still incomprehensible to me. There was no dry eye in the house. And I’m sharing this because sometimes we need a reality check. We need to gain real perspective on what matters and how we should be treating people. Take a look at your biggest strife in life right now—is the aggravation worth it? Is it really that important? Can you let it go? Another speaker closed with these words: Open your heart. Yup, that sounds like the way to go!

Let’s GO! WE GOT THIS!
Beth