Thank you for the the year of a lifetime!!

Cydney

Writing your last diary entry (or in this case blog) or your farewell letter is as complicated as my favorite pageant question, “So, tell me about yourself”. Thirty three years to cover in a single question is no easy task but neither is saying goodbye to a year of a lifetime. To sum it all up, to thank every individual or to give justice in words to the memories, is next to impossible. Obviously, I am extremely thankful, grateful and humbled by it all. I have opened up my heart and my life over the year. I have shared tears and joy…and moments that have changed my soul forever. There just is no way to put it into words in a way that will describe how it has all become a part of who I am.

So, I am not going to write a farewell letter or last blog entry… quite the contrary…I have no intention of stopping my work and there is a lot of road travel left in this girl. Therefore, I am going to write a welcome letter.

To the years ahead…to the heroes I will meet… and the opportunities of hope I pray I will encounter….WELCOME. Welcome to the life of a woman who is strong, fearless and determined to beat cancer. I may be little on the outside but I have a mighty tall spirit on the inside and I am so grateful to welcome you into my life. I come to you with great strength because of the people who have supported me on the road so far. Great people. Heroes. I am who I am because of them. I am stronger because of them. I am even more determined because of them.

WELCOME world… give me all you’ve got. I have a lifetime of memories and a very special year of service in my weapons kit. Watch out cancer. I am ready for battle! This five foot five powerhouse from Tennessee is ready….after all, I HAVE been to Ninja Mountain.

Here we go Team Tennessee. Goodnight and not goodbye. We are ready for our next adventure and believe me…there is a lot more adventure and hope ahead!

See You on THE ROAD TO THE CURE!

Cydney

PS…Stay tuned for the launch of The Road to the CURE blog! Photos, videos and stories from the road. What? Did you think I was kidding? I wasn’t…. I really mean it….The road is just beginning….

Gabe's Ninja Mountain

Relay for Life Volunteers from Kentucky, Ohio, Tennessee and Georgia came together for the 2010 American Cancer Society Relay Summit this weekend. It was a celebration of past success and a look into future efforts to battle cancer. I was invited to be a guest speaker representing the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network. I shared my story and offered the audience ways that they too can make their voices stronger by adovcating for legislation for increased funding for cancer research. I was moved by the energy in the room and so honored to be a speaker for such an amazing group of 500+ volunteers and staff members. The most amazing part of the event for me was the 33 people who joined ACS after the speech and the hundreds more that shared their relay petition stories. We will bring all of that momentum and support to DC with us in September.

Thank you ACS and ACS CAN for inviting me to be a part of this event. I look forward to many more opportunities to support the work we are all doing in the fight against cancer.

Let Them Win

As a small child, I looked at him with such love.

He stood proud and turned to look at the world with a smile.

His effortless nature seemed to make life look so easy.

As a child, of course, life was easy too.

We could talk about nothing but to us, it was everything.

The rest of the world was in a mad rush to get by.

For us, we could just sit and watch the birds.

And that was as complicated as it needed to be. 

We’d play checkers grandpa and I.

His years of wisdom and strength vs. my innocence.

The game wasn’t really about winning.

It was more about playing.

The obvious irony of my few years to his world of knowledge

Made for a decisive victory in his favor.

Yet, somehow, I always seemed to win.

My small hands moving each piece simply for the sake of moving it.

I had no regard for strategy or for winning.

I just wanted to play.

And still, somehow, I always seemed to win. 

We played checkers today grandpa and I.

My years of wisdom and strength vs. his innocence.

The game wasn’t really about winning.

It was more about playing.

The obvious irony of time and the spirit that compelled him to still play

Made for a decisive victory in my favor.

Yet, somehow, as I started to win, I stopped.

I saw his weak hands move each piece simply for the sake of being able to.

He had no regard for winning.

He just wanted to be able to play.

So, with no regard for victory

I let him win.

On Saturday, contestants in the upcoming TN International Pageant had the opportunity to take part in the Walking Workshop with Rachel Ethridge (former Miss Tennessee International). After the workshop, several of the ladies and their families joined Phil Frazer and I at the Nashville Sounds game. It was a hot one but we all had a great time getting to know each other…and enjoying a few snow cones in the process!

I am simply in awe of Luke. Despite some otherwise “not-so-nice” people who  he came in contact with during the fundraiser, he stayed the course and NEVER stopped trying or lost his spirit. He just kept saying “It’s hot and some people don’t want to give. That’s ok. It’s for those kids and I am not going to stop asking”. As I watched, his uncompromised determination turned into something extraordinary. People would walk out of the store with a single bottle of glue or a ruler. People who had little or nothing themselves were inspired to give what they could. Some people came out with bags full of supplies and others a single item…but their acts were all beautiful. Luke would never say it and may even be a little embarassed that I am blogging about it…but by just being who he is, he inspired beauty in people.

Beauty isn’t something you find…It is something  you are.

Growing up, my mom would spend hours on the beach searching for small shells that she called her “beauties”. These shells were found in the big sand dunes full of the broken shells that washed onto the beaches. These were the dunes that people just stepped over as they were heading to the shore to find other shells. Perhaps that would have been easier. Not my mom though. She would sit and dig…and dig… hours…only to find one beauty that had survived the crashing waves and beach. It was worth it to her. She never lost her spirit or became discouraged while digging because it didn’t matter how long it took to find one… because finding one perfect beauty was worth all the effort to get there.

I have talked a lot about my mom over the year of blogging on this site. Perhaps, knowing how she spent many of her hours “digging for beauties” will help you know her. As she always had a way of doing, her peaceful, calm and effortless way of understanding this world was showcased in some of the most simple actions…and sometimes it took me a while to see them in that way. Today, I saw how searching for those shells was a perfect metaphor for who she is…someone who doesn’t walk by the broken shells, she spends all the time it takes to find the beauties within them.

Beauty isn’t something you find…It is something you are.

Two very seperate and otherwise unremarkable life events have connected themselves over the distance of time today. Two people who I love more than life itself taught me about real beauty. It is everywhere….you just have to dig through some broken shells and empty hearts to find it…but when you do…you have found something extraordinary.

One To Call a Beauty

 She spent hours on the beach

Digging for Beauties

So much time spent with broken shells

Only to find one to call a beauty

He spent hours in the sea of people

Asking for Kindness

So much time spent with empty hearts

Only to find one to call a beauty

Through Broken Shells and Empty Hearts

You have taught me

Beauty isn’t just something you find

It is something you are.

WHAT AN AMAZING DAY!!!! Strange way to start this post…but I feel bad for Luke. I have not stopped talking about the event today since I got home. We had a date night planned and I spent the first half of it telling him about my day. When I realized I hadn’t stopped talking since we started dinner, I apologized…he just smiled… and said he gets it and understands how happy days like today make me…

I was afforded the opportunity to be the Master of Ceremonies for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure “Gallant Celebration” which was the second annual Survivor Luncheon. It was originally scheduled for May 2, the day of the hundred year flood. That didn’t matter. It will take more than a flood to dampen our spirit!! We celebrated survivorship with amazing women, men, families and volunteers. Some extraordinary country artists and song writers joined us and we had one of the most amazing afternoons showing cancer what we are made of. We aren’t going to stop fighting. I can’t wait until October 9th when I get to see everyone again at the Race. I will have given the Mrs. Tennessee crown to another amazing woman….but no one worry…that won’t be the last of Cydney Miller….

…there’s A LOT of fight still left in this ROAD CREW member!!

Songs From the Heart concert was one of the most extraordinary events I have ever witnessed. Singer/Songwriter Tricia Walker held a two night workshop with cancer survivors, families and supporters. She took their words and stories and helped put them together as songs and offered her talents by putting them to music. Friday night, Luke and I watched as they performed the songs. We laughed, we cried, we shared, we remembered…and we celebrated the heroes that each of those songs were about.

WHAT A BLAST!! Today was the third annual women’s football clinic at APSU. Head Football Coach, Rick Christophel, his assistant coaches and some of his “real” players, were host to almost 60 women who wanted to learn more about football and get out on the field….and all the money raised went to the American Cancer Society! We took part in several information sessions to learn calls, plays and rules and then we hit the field. I took part in the kick, punt, pass and fastest contest. I did really well at the pass and fastest contest…apparently kicking isn’t my thing (sorry about your finger coach!)

There isn’t a one size fits all approach to awareness. It is events just like this that bring a fresh, fun and exciting approach to awareness and fundraising. Thank you to all the coaches and the committee for putting this great event together (and for letting me wear the helmet!)

GO PEAY!!! Looking forward to attending some APSU games this year and to watching some of my “coaches” play. If you are down a player, I’ll be ready to jump in!