As I looked out across the valley, beauty hugged
every square inch: full of life, hope, and such spirit. Vineyards of grapevines
stretched beyond the horizon, embracing the earth with its unmatchable beauty.
Every sight that my eyes could take in was covered
in beauty: vines at every stage of growth, from newly turned soil to trunks
whose bark showed the many stories of past harvests. At the base of the dirt I
could see the beauty of each individual plant: strong and independent,
stretching towards the sky. But where the base split off into a multitude of
branches and leaves spilled out over guiding wires, it was difficult to see
where one vine began and the next ended: seamlessly melding together as one
strong blanket of leaf covered branches.
While a single vine has the capability of producing
enough grapes for a few bottles of wine, it cannot supply an entire winery with
enough fruit to make hundreds of bottles for one season's vintage: it takes the
fruit of many vines working together.
Together as One
The fight against Cystic Fibrosis is like that of a
vineyard: made up of a multitude of independent and strong individual plants
that come together to form a strong and supportive framework, giving way for
each bloom to live out its fullest potential. They each lend their harvest for
a single greater purpose. You are a part of the framework that supports each
and every one of us with CF. You are a part of that mass field of vines. We as
individuals cannot fight CF alone, it takes a field of people lending their
support and contributing their potential to this fight: giving new life and new
possibility to every breath. The greater the field, the greater the hope that
is given to each friend, aunt, brother, grandson, daughter, and loved one
impacted by CF.
Be a part of this incredibly strong and beautiful
field of vines. On May 30th I ask you to walk with us for The Great Strides
against Cystic Fibrosis. Every step taken is another step closer to finding a
cure. Come and show that each individual with CF is not alone in this fight,
but a part of a beautiful strong vineyard.
Because of You
90 cents of every dollar given to the Cystic
Fibrosis Foundation goes directly towards life saving drug development and gets
us one step closer to a cure. In all honesty, without each of your generous
donations, I would not be here. I would not be breathing. I would not be
witnessing the beauty that every breath holds. I owe you my very life. I try
and imagine a life in which I no longer existed. What if my journey would have
ended when it was expected to at the age of 20? I think about all the beauty I
would have missed out upon: marriage, college, graduate school, music,
traveling the world, watching my goddaughters grow up, and every incredible
relationship that has impacted my life. I am alive because of those life
extending treatments and drugs. I am alive because of you.
But I am greedy. While I am so incredibly grateful
for every breath I am given, I still want more. I want to grow old. I want to
travel the world again. I want to breathe. I want to live life freely without
thinking about CF and all its ruthless realities. I want to see the children
with CF live out their dreams and freely breathe without hesitation. I want
them to dwell in the limitless possibility of time and the future. I want
every loved one to live without fear of CF. I want tears caused by CF to be
happy ones and filled with hope, not because of the pain, realities, and fear
CF holds. I want every parent to never fear a CF diagnosis. I want CF to be
remembered as something of the past, not a part of anyone's future. Not a part
of OUR future.
I ask from the most humbled depths of my heart to
please help make this a reality. We are so close.
Great Strides Walk - TEAM ASHLEY
Saturday, May 30th, 2015
Spencer Park, Sioux Falls, SD
10 a.m.
Please DONATE to Team Ashley at:
To WALK and be a part of Team Ashley
please register yourself (you do not have to donate) so we can get a final
count for walkers. Click "Join Team" at: Team Ashley - Great Strides
Help be a part of a strong and supportive network
of life-giving branches. We cannot do it alone. Love to you all.
Walk. Donate. Share CF's story.
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