Alwyn Cosgrove

If I could give just one piece of advice, it'd be this:

Find a group of mentors and friends who can open your mind, offer advice, provide feedback, and who care about you.

I emailed Alwyn Cosgrove earlier today to tell him about my new T-Nation gig. After congratulating me, he had one more thing to say:


"PS - I have a scan/check up tomorrow. Keep me in your prayers. I feel great but it's always a wee bit scary."

For those of you who don't know, Alwyn has had Stage 4 cancer. Twice.

I wished him "good luck" and this is what he wrote back:

Like I said I feel great. Best I've felt in 5 years. Crazy to think that I was probably sick all that time. I was diagnosed 4 years ago this weekend. I was in stage IV. So I'd been sick for at least a year or two prior. All clear in Feb 05 - relapsed to stage IV within a year, so I never really went into remission.
Means I was sick from 03 to 06 and then a year plus of recovering since the transplant.

Scans are weird. On the one hand they're terrifying. They don't scan for nothing, you know? But on the other hand, my oncologist has taught me a lot about scans. So they do become a wee bit less terrifying to me. Still though, getting an "all clear" scan is a good feeling.

But I don't think the trepidation or fear if I'm being really honest will ever go away. I wonder if Lance Armstrong feels the same as I'm sure he goes for scans too semi-regularly.

On the other hand, all the old emotions that "reawaken" are maybe good to bring up. It reminds me of the spirit I have, the support I have and to not take life for granted.

I guess there's part of me that feels lucky and grateful for these thoughts. These feelings are maybe a gift that most people will never get. They'll end up walking through life unhappy, depressed and unfulfilled.

And that's my philosophy for the day :)
And I have no idea why I'm sharing it with you but I hope you enjoyed it....

--
AC


The lesson? Don't wait for something to happen. Go out and get it. Be grateful.

We're not going to be here forever. Make the most of what you have.

Oh. And good luck, Alwyn. :)


-Nate

PS - If you'd like to support cancer research and get a ton of top-notch training info, go check out LiftStrong. All profits go to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

Posted Jul 30, 2008 by Nate Green.
This entry is filed under inspiration.