Day 22: "Who I was is in who you are."

January 31: Thirteen days left!

Less than two weeks. Holy cow. This may have been the most rewarding day of it all so far.

The day has been a bit of a roller coaster (nothing too low...but it went from "I think fundraising is slowing down a bit," to, "Oh my gosh, woo woo WOO!") More on that in a second, but there has been one constant:

I have been thinking about my Dad all day long. And those are the best days.

Life is crazy and, while 24 hours never goes by that I don't think of him, he's not on my mind as frequently as he was the weeks after he died. That's why running at night is one of my favorite things to do. "Running," because I have time to let my mind relax and go where it wants to. "At night," because the world looks so much bigger than during the day, and it's nice to think that his energy is somwhere in the big openess I am looking out into.

Today has also been a great one because, at about 4pm, I stopped by my mailbox at work and their were nine new donations! Combined with what you've donated online, we're now up to $2300 -- exactly -- from 79 different contributors!! (Because I'm not at the office and know that I'll forgot someone if I try to thank everyone off the top of my head, I'm going to save that for tomorrow -- though a general thanks is coming right up.)

When I'm saying "thanks" the obvious thank yous are for your belief in the students I'm fundraising for, your belief in my judgement as someone who can pick a worthy cause, and your belief in my ability to run a marathon (good luck with that last one :-) ).

There is also a less obvious (though always present) reason I want to thank you. The reason is on my dad's tombstone. On it, there is a line I paraphrased from a quote we found which reads, "Who I was is in who you are."

Here is the full quote, by Frederick Buechner:

“When you remember me, it means that you have carried something of who I am with you, that I have left some mark of who I am on who you are. It means that you can summon me back to your mind even though countless years and miles may stand between us. It means that if we meet again, you will know me. It means that even after I die, you can still see my face and hear my voice and speak to me in your heart.

For as long as you remember me, I am never entirely lost. When I'm feeling most ghost-like, it is your remembering me that helps remind me that I actually exist. When I'm feeling sad, it's my consolation. When I'm feeling happy, it's part of why I feel that way."

Every single time I do something related to this marathon/donation -- whether it's writing a blog entry, going on a run, or receiving a new contribution -- I get to remember him.

Thank you.