Why I Relay

Coming up on the final four weeks of Relay For Life of Second Life. Everyone involved each has their reason for doing this. This post is to give mine.

Relay For Life is something that I'm very passionate about.....perhaps at times, too passionate. I still remember watching the cancer take over my supervisor and friend of 27 years, David Wunder. It started out as simple prostate cancer, but quickly spread before the doctor's could do anything. He dropped from 250 to 135 in weight. At times, got around with a cane, in most cases, a wheelchair. Despite what the cancer was doing to him, his mind was still sharp as a tack. He knew every part on a Brunswick pinsetter, the part number of each part, where it was located in inventory, what page number in the parts catalog it was on. He knew every member of Doc Savage's crew, their descriptions, their quirks, and every villain Doc faced. He had every book featuring Perry Rhodan. He was a fan of Elfquest and Groo the Wanderer. A HUGE fan of the Myth Adventures series (people kept asking me what was a D-Hopper and why David was blaming me for losing ours). During the time that Hal Jordan, aka The Green Lantern, had taken the mantle of The Spectre, David was pissed and referred to him as "Not The Spectre" (I guess DC listened to him). In July of '08, David lost the battle, passing away in his sleep. The one thing I remember most about his fight with cancer, was how he got up every day, regardless of the cancer, and continued to live life to it's fullest, despite the fact that each day it became more and more difficult.

So, I relay in his memory, and the hope that one day, nobody has to fight so hard to enjoy each day.