· Date: Tuesday July 16, 2019
· Rest Day: Chicago, Illinois
When I woke up, I was exhausted, and it had felt like I had only just made it to bed a few hours before. I couldn’t believe I had slept for more than ten hours and still felt as exhausted as I did. Even worse, I had coughed up a storm through the night and so had Rob, my roommate. Rob had also left the trivia fundraiser early last night, shortly after I had. He told me when he got back to our room, I was sound asleep. I hadn’t even heard him or his coughing either. Rob and a few teammates who were rooming next door told me they could hear me coughing all night and weren’t surprised when I woke up feeling like I had been hit by a bus. Rob had slept for most of the afternoon yesterday too since he was having very similar symptoms to “the plague” that I was still recovering from.
After talking with each other, and the team directors, we decided it would probably be best to sleep in and rest all day. Imerman Angels were a support organization for those battling cancer and we were unsure of how the team would be volunteering today. Since we didn’t want to spread what Rob or I had to any cancer patients, we decided we would stay back. Staying back would also help us to strengthen our immune systems and our bodies so that we could fully get back into the swing of things over the next few days. I found out later that Rizwan and Luke also stayed back because they were experiencing similar complaints.
I couldn’t understand how I had seemed to get worse overnight. I was disappointed in how I felt, and I was sad to miss volunteering with Imerman Angels. Imerman Angels is a nonprofit organization that connects cancer survivors with cancer patients who have identical diagnoses. This allows those going through treatment to have a companion who understands their situation and is there to support and guide them through their cancer journey. I loved what the foundation stood for and realized that if I had known of this resource, I would have benefitted greatly. What stood out to me was the aspect of understanding that these mentors provided their mentees. After looking more into what this organization’s mission was, I found I wanted to be in a place one day where I could be a mentor to someone going through testicular cancer treatment. I thought that talking with the representatives of the foundation with whom the team was talking to today, would help me to get to that place. Although I wanted to help others, I had to help myself first. Volunteering with Team Boston and Imerman Angels would have been the first step to do this. I was so sad to have missed this opportunity and hoped that someday soon, a similar one would come.
Rob and I wouldn’t wake up until almost noon, at which point we had both run out of DayQuil and NyQuil. We were feeling better than this morning but both of us were not up to par. Once we had gotten more medicine from CVS, we told ourselves we would feel better. Luckily, within a few hours, our coughs subsided, and we found we had more energy and were feeling a little better. The medicine was helping.
The rest of the team hadn’t come back after volunteering with Imerman Angels this morning since everyone wanted to explore the city. When we spoke with Luke and Rizwan, they still weren’t feeling any better. Since Luke and Rizwan didn’t want to leave their beds, Rob and I decided to venture out to get some food together. We hoped that some fresh air and some food would help us to continue to feel better and were hopeful that we would be able to explore some of the city too. We ate lunch at a small mom and pop type of sandwich shop. It was across the street from De Paul University and Rob and I agreed we would be regular customers if we took classes at the University. After, we decided to rest some more back in the dorm rooms and do our laundry too.
At this point, no one else from the team had arrived back at the dorms, and Rob and I realized that no one would be coming back for a while. So, we decided that since we were feeling better after having rested, taken medicine, and had lunch, we would sightsee while we could. Although we weren’t remotely up to par, we wanted to take advantage of the time we had in Chicago since tomorrow we would be running to St. Joseph, Michigan.
As Rob and I began exploring together, I saw how stunned Rob was to experience the city. Having grown up in South Carolina and lived there his entire life, Rob had never seen a city this size before.
I remember Rob asking me, “Where are all of these people from and what do they do?”
We were on the subway and countless people had gotten on and off as the subway car was traveling through the city. Rob was wide-eyed at everything he saw, and I imagined that I was like this when Annalyse first showed me New York City. It was truly amazing exploring with Rob. We saw the famous Bean and the surrounding park where concerts were often held. We explored the sidewalks and the views along the Chicago Riverwalk which runs through different parts of the city. Here we saw boat cruises, fancy dining, and pier fishing with countless photo opportunities. We both wished it had been nicer weather since the entire day was cloudy and blocked most of these famous views we were exploring. At one point, Rob showed me a Ross store. This was very similar to a Michaels or a Marshalls because the chain sells various brand name items at a reduced price due to small imperfections in the product. I was amazed to see the running shoes I was wearing for a third of the price I had paid. I wish there was a Ross store in Connecticut! Rob was even more excited when we stumbled upon Wrigley Field, home to the Chicago Cubs Major League Baseball team. Rob is a huge fan of professional sports, and as we stood on the sidewalk watching the players walk into the stadium, he knew every single one of them. I was impressed he could identify them on sight!
Throughout our day together, Rob and I had deep conversations and got to know each other very well. Throughout the summer, we had stayed up late a few nights talking about life and having meaningful conversations. Now, we had an entire day to talk and we enjoyed it. It blew my mind how in such a small group, we could always find something in common with whoever we were talking with. With Rob especially, I found this easy as many of our beliefs about life were identical. Our conversations ranged from politics to religion, and relationships. Throughout the remainder of the trip, Rob and I would often continue these conversations together. We would talk about what we both want in life and how we handle ourselves when something goes wrong. We talked about our motivations and our goals. We talked about everything.
As we made our way back to De Paul University for a team dinner with some 4K Alumni, Rob and I met up with Jackie, and Alexis. They had found postcards in a gift store and Rob and I wanted to get some. We had been looking all day and had been unable to find any at all. I was trying to mail postcards to friends and family as we made our way across the country but was not the best at keeping up with this. Alexis had mailed one postcard from every state. I felt like my inconsistency with this was similar to my blog and I wish I hadn’t done this. Regardless, Rob and I were happy to have found postcards and to meet up with some other people.
At dinner, I talked with everyone else on the team and they told me about the morning volunteering with Imerman Angels. I guess I hadn’t missed much at all. The team hardly spoke to foundation representatives and didn’t speak with any current patients either. Imerman Angels had the team stand on the sidewalk and hand out fliers and Lemonhead candy to passerby. Apparently, the Foundation didn’t have much for us to do. Rob, Rizwan, Luke, and I were glad we had stayed back even if there wasn’t a risk of spreading what we had to those with compromised immune systems. All four of us were feeling much better than this morning and very glad to have had an entire day to rest and recover.
After dinner, I talked with Annalyse. I hadn’t spoken to her a lot over the past few days as most any time I was able to rest and sleep I was doing so. I spoke to my family as well and it was amazing to talk with everyone and catch up on what was going on in our lives. I was realizing that I enjoyed the team and the 4K for Cancer, but I missed my family a lot. I wanted to be home to talk with them and to experience what I was doing with them. But I also didn’t want to leave Team Boston. We were family now, and all twenty-eight members of Team Boston would likely never be together again.
As I was getting ready for a very early bed, Rob walked into our room and asked me if I wanted to go back to Millennium Park to see the Bean at nighttime. I couldn’t resist thinking about what the reflections on the mirrored bean-shaped sculpture would look like at nighttime and ended up getting out of bed for fear of missing out. Caroline joined Rob and I and we ventured over to the subway and Millennium Park together. On the way, we bumped into Tyler B., and a few others. Tyler wanted to join us since she hadn’t seen the Bean at all yet and her group was going back to De Paul University. As the four of us walked through the city, it was quiet. Chicago was nothing like the New York City I was used to. New York City truly never slept, and at this hour, Chicago seemed quiet in comparison.
At Millennium Park, we saw the beautiful reflections of the bean that I had anticipated. The clouds from earlier today had shifted into fog though and we couldn’t see as much as we could have if it was a clear night. Still, it felt strange to be here at nighttime when almost no one else was around. When Rob and I had visited earlier today, there were herds of tourists and families all taking pictures and it was impossible to find your own space. We were all so glad we had come back to the Bean since it gave us such a different experience! As we walked through the park, we found ourselves observing various artwork, architecture, and landscaping that had been strategically placed throughout the entire area. This park was known for the impressive displays of architecture and creativity that could be seen at every point. As we made our way across a massive winding foot bride that seemed like it had been placed in the park by future generations from space, we also found ourselves in beautifully placed pants, shrubbery, and trees. The entire design of the park was incredible, and I wished I had explored this more closely in the daylight!
The best aspect of the park was the Cancer Survivors Plaza. We were lucky enough to stumble upon this area of the park and as I processed the meaning and display it gave us, I quickly realized this was my favorite aspect of the entire day and the entire week. Now, a year later, I am realizing that this is the point in the trip where I had made a distinct turn in my outlook on survivorship and cancer itself.
We first saw massive potted plants lining a sidewalk that surrounded a rectangular green. There was dim lighting throughout the plaza and between each pot was a plaque. The plaques were lit by white lettering that had various quotes, statistics, and motivational phrases for those going through cancer and those who had survived their treatments. It was beautiful. The air was filled with a peaceful, calm, serenity, that I could only imagine was helped by the fact that we were visiting at night. We slowly wandered through the plaza, each going at our own pace and taking in the display as we made our way from plaque to plaque. It immediately made me think. It made us all think. Rob thought about his father, Caroline about her parents, and Tyler about her sister. We all thought about Erin, the other cancer survivor on the team, knowing she could benefit from visiting the plaza. I immediately thought about myself and Laurie. I am positive that Rob, Caroline, and Tyler gave me more time to process the park. As I wandered through, I took pictures of the most relatable and motivational plaques. I also took pictures of the plaques that represented what I wanted in my life and my relationship with cancer.
Even today, I frequently go back to these pictures to think about what these mean and how I can emulate them. There is too much to share in this singular blog post about what exactly I learned from Chicago’s Cancer Survivors Plaza, so I plan on going more in-depth in a later post as I reflect on how this changed my perspectives throughout the remainder of the trip and continues to do so today.
After walking through the Cancer Survivors Plaza, the four of us sat down on the edge of the pier which ran along the back of Millennium Park. We talked about what the Plaza spoke about and what our own experiences had been like. We shared a lot that night together and I was so thankful we had been lucky enough to stumble upon this area of the park. None of us had thought that this is how our night would end but I am sure that Rob, Caroline, and Tyler would agree with me when I say I wouldn’t want to change anything.
As we made our way back through the park, we went a different way and passed a massive fountain with magnificent colorful displays. Beneath the fountain, a man was playing blues guitar and singing to the quiet night air. The gentle breeze carried his voice to us as he sang to no one in particular, and somehow this added to the peacefulness of the entire night.
Once we had arrived back at De Paul University, all I could do was think about what I had seen at the Cancer Survivors Plaza and what I had read. I was grateful for this valuable lesson that had been given us and I was hopeful I would take away from the Plaza what was intended to be learned and incorporated in the lives of those walking through its gardens.
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