MT KILIMANJARO

“That is a CRAZY IDEA but I LOVE IT!!!” was my response when a patient invited me to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro.

Yes you heard that right, MT KILIMANJARO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The invite came last April 2016 and I am pretty sure both of us suspected something would stop us in our tracks prior to making this happen…but it hasn’t.  And so WE WILL!!!   AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

In March of 2015, this beautiful woman named Kelly started chiropractic care in my office, Cafe of LIFE.  She is just a year older than me and had gotten a cancer diagnosis just a couple weeks prior to starting care.  I was in shock and awe that she could have such a bright, shiny composure with so many unknowns ahead.  If I remember correctly she already had a huge scar from one biopsy they had done the week prior.  Kelly was bright and energetic and positive and she had made the connection that chiropractic is going to help her body process everything that is ahead of her.  And it did just that.

She made all kinds of lifestyle shifts as well as underwent heavy chemo and radiation treatments and kept with her chiropractic care all along the way.  Because she was so regular with her care, I was able to follow her step by step through all of the radical changes that those heavy drugs had on her body.  I have worked with many cancer patients over the years however none so vulnerable to share every little detail.  Of course I learned a lot about the cancer going through school but experiencing it with her, from the patient’s perspective, was eye-opening.

And through it all, we became friends.

She did the entire treatment process quite gracefully and came out on top!  She has been clear for a while and one day back in April of 2016 I got added to an email thread she started with a list of other great female friends of hers, that invited us to climb MT KILIMANJARO.

Let me just start by saying that I was ABSOLUTELY HONORED to be included in thread along with her close friends.  My stomach sank at the possibility of taking on the challenge and my head started spinning with excitement as I really pondered what it would be like!

We started a conversation that went on for about 6 months while she waited for her final scans and clearance from her doctor.  In October, we pulled the trigger on putting a deposit down to hold our place with the adventure company.  We continued conversations trying to digest this whole idea and the first week of January we purchased our airline tickets.

Now life is officially in “CHECKMATE” status and this is happening.

There are bits and pieces of logistics to figure out and each day one more thing comes together.

I will continue this blog as I progress through all the details and training and of course share the entire journey with all of you.  Please stay tuned right here as Kelly and I make our progress.

…as we work towards CLIMBING MT KILIMANJARO!!!!