Rising to the Challenge!

It ain't what they call me, it's what I choose to answer to!

It's already September, My son is back at school,  and the summer is going out with a whimper. Where has the time gone? I haven't had much of a racing season because of injury but now I'm back, feeling mentally strong. I have a lot of work to do to get back into shape and I feel very unfit at this moment in time. Watch this space though because I am determined to bounce back in style next season, stronger, fitter, and raring to chase fresh challenges.

Life is a roller coaster, and some people choose to ride it and some would choose not to. All I can tell you is whatever the ride you can close your eyes to things you don't want to see, but you can't close your heart to the things you don't want to feel. Let's say I wouldn't be doing some 'challenges' if I didn't understand what people with disabilities in Africa have to endure on a daily basis! I have been there, I have lived it and experienced the stigma and prejudices one has to face when you are a minority, when you are 'different', and when the society you live in labels you disabled and therefore useless. These people know they are being treated unfairly but they just have to carry on living and in most cases being denied the most basic human rights. As a woman who is differently able, I know it's not what these people have been through in their lives that defines who they are, it is purely how they get through it that will make them the people they are today and tomorrow. And yes, beautiful, strong and compassionate people do not just happen - they have to suffer first.

AbleChildAfrica is a relatively small charity yet it  does  so much in changing lives. Their sole purpose is to provide help, support, and encouragement to the differently abled young people of Africa and their families, and to promote the realisation of equal rights for them all. 

I discovered that when you know your value you stop selling yourself short, you stand tall and are never ashamed of who you are... and when those around you want to focus on disabilities, you remove the 'dis' and use all your abilities to rise above limitations and break boundaries... Ladies and gentlemen, I am going to attempt to complete the 'Tough Mudder' challenge 

www.itv.com/news/london/story/2013-08-28/fresh-challenge-for-paralympian/

  an extreme assault course that includes ice, fire and underground tunnels, to name but a few. Not to 'boast', but  I will be tackling the challenge in my wheelchair, and I fully intend to finish it, no matter how long it takes.. Yes! I know it's tough but not as tough compared to the challenges differently able people in Africa have to face everyday of their lives. PLEASE support me in this challenge to raise much needed funds for AbleChildAfrica and help support giving a new lease of life to people who deserve it. Just click on the link below.

www.ablechildafrica.org/what-you-can-do/tough-mudder/

or text 'MUDD13' followed by the amount you wish to donate (£1,2,3,,5,10) to 70070

To end on a different note. Last summer I donated a racing wheelchair to the DR Congo so  Dedeline could compete in the Paralympics. That very same chair is now helping a young man to hopefully compete in the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow next year. That is how a small donation can help to change lives. I will be watching next year and cheering him on.

Journey to Yorkshire -RIBI 88th Annual Conference

Last Saturday I took part in my first track event of the season down at Kingston Athletics Stadium. I managed wins in the 100m and 200m, and a second place in the 400m and I was pleased with my performance. It was also the launch of the WeirArcher Academy, a new initiative by David Weir and his coach Jenny Archer that aims to change young peoples lives through sport, something I can fully relate to considering how much sport has improved my own life.

I had a busy week training and managed to do a few long road sessions as well as a couple of sessions in the gym and I'm starting to feel like a proper athlete again after a long winter break. Even after not racing in the  London 2012, I still  love and enjoy the sport too much to give up, and as long as I have the strength and energy to compete I will keep going though may be on a different level.

On Thursday I got up early to make the journey up to Yorkshire where I had been invited to speak at the 88th Rotary International in Great Britain and Ireland held in Harrogate. ( www.ribi.org ) I was to speak at the RIBI Foundation lunch. The journey was fine and I was met at York station by two Rotarians, Peter Knowles and Roger Percival, two lovely chatty blokes who gave me a whistle stop tour of York, pointing out places of interest that included the magnificent York Minster and the ancient castle. It is a truly beautiful city, steeped in history and I only wished I had more time to have a proper look around. I was told that at the Jorvik Centre you can smell the Vikings and feel the war!

We drove through the beautiful Yorkshire countryside as we made our way to Harrogate, a town I was informed was famous for its many wells that were said to have curative powers that could heal the sick. We arrived at the well named Majestic Hotel, which amongst its many claims to fame boasts the biggest gents toilets in Europe! I said goodbye to Roger and Peter and thanked them for their kindness and company.

Debbie and Mike Hodge (my hosts) helped me to check into the hotel, then I went to my room to freshen up, agreeing to meet them for dinner in the evening. 

We had a lovely dinner in the hotel and were joined by  Jannine and Paul Birtwistle from Guernsey, a wonderful couple responsible for the 'End Polio Now' teddy bears. We all had a lovely time, chatting about all the excellent work done by Rotarians around the world. I really enjoyed myself.

After breakfast with Debbie and Mike they took me across to Harrogate International Centre for registration, then we headed to the House of Friendship where there were many stalls that showcased the many projects that the Rotarians support, such as Aquabox, a charity that provides safe water for those in desperate need, the ABC Project that works in Uganda providing medical care and treatment to HIV mothers in the rural areas so their babies don't get infected, the Children's Air Ambulance that helps save and change young lives in the UK, Mercy Ships UK which changes lives in Africa by performing eye operations. One organisation that particularly caught my eye was The Wheelchair Foundation UK, a charity that gives hope, mobility and freedom to millions around the world who need a wheelchair. "Yesterday I was a maggot on the ground. Today I am a butterfly". This is called empowerment and is what I received when I got my first wheelchair. I felt very humbled as I went around the stalls and it became evident that one doesn't need to be a millionaire to support others. I have learned to give, not because I have too much but because I have known the feeling of NOT having.

It was time for lunch and I was given the great honour of sitting on the same table as David Buchanan, John Minhinick (RIBI President 2012 - 13), and Rotary International President Sakuji Tanaka, whose theme for this year is,'Peace through service'. I had gotten a 'End Polio Now' teddy which needed a name. John Minhinick suggested  'Sakuji'.I shall be taking 'Sakuji' on all my future talks and my hope is that by the time he is 3 polio will have been eradicated from the world!

I was called up onto the stage to speak. As usual I was really nervous but once I started talking the nerves disappeared.  I looked out at the gathered Rotarians and they filled me with joy and optimism to see so many committed people who are ready to serve others.  In the morning as I was dressing I had intended wearing a beautiful pair of high heeled shoes, blue, to match my dress, but as I wheeled across the room one fell off and I knew it was a recipe for disaster so I just wore my tatty old suede shoes that I would normally wear with jeans. When I was a young woman growing up this would have mortified me because I was so embarrassed of showing my thin polio legs and  always wanted to look good and fit in. Being  older and wiser I now  know disability doesn't come with a manual and you just get on with life and be happy. To be honest, it does not matter if the glass is half empty or half full ... I have learned to be grateful I have a glass and there is something in it. 

I had a few hours to mingle with the Rotarians before Roger and Peter drove me back to York where I got my train back into London.

Easter Weekend.

It's been a hectic few weeks since my last entry and I've been very busy being a mum, athlete, sister, auntie and friend. My training has been severely curtailed by the freezing weather but I have managed to get on rollers and work out in the gym. The season begins in earnest in April but I'm feeling very good physically and I'm really looking forward to getting back into competition.

Last Saturday I had the great privilege to be a guest speaker at the 'Women Mentoring Women' Conference held in London. There were lots of inspirational women present who are very successful in their own fields, such as politics, pastoral, charities and entrepreneurs. I was reminded of how bad it is to judge others as I mingled with these women whose faces were full of confidence and determination. I really enjoyed the sessions and came away knowing a lot more than I did when I arrived.

Today, Saturday, I have just returned from spending a lovely couple of days in Oxford with my good friend. I really enjoyed myself. The world's first ever museum, The Ashmolean, was a fantastic place to visit. It is full of beautiful paintings, sculptures and historical objects. We left after my friend started feeling uncomfortable surrounded by mummies - The whole experience was amazing. Oxford is a very beautiful place and the sense of history is almost overwhelming as we wheeled through the streets full of ancient buildings.

Life is full of surprises, at least mine is and every moment is an opportunity and we have a choice on how we live it. When we are curious, we are in love with life and one just can't fail to be reminded that genuine friendship is important to most human beings. So these few days have been about opening my heart and allowing wonderful things to flow to me - enjoying and being taught that when I let go of who I am, I become who I might be -