Journey's End...The Big Result!

Well, hello again!  I've rather missed writing this blog - it became so much a part of my walk and, even now, i read it just to remember those remarkable 3 weeks of my life last year.  Now that it is over 4 months since i crossed the finishing line on that glorious, sunny day in October, i felt that i must write and declare the enormous amount of money raised..............£37,694.83!! Actually, since presenting the cheque to the hospital, i've had yet another donation so it's really (drum roll, please) £37,769.83.  Unbelievable (my original target was £10,000 and i wondered if i'd reach that). 

It was a wonderful moment handing over the large cheque to Dr. Andy Haynes - the mastermind behind the Lymphoma Research Fund.  Mum, Dad and I turned up at the Nottingham City Hospital to a wonderful, warm reception - thank you to Barbara and her fabulously efficient admin team (and for my delicious pink cake!) who have processed every cheque and written so many letters (i stopped counting after 200+).  Particular thanks must go to the inspiring Ian Daniels who showed us around his laboratory which is really the lymphoma research nerve centre.  His enthusiasm was remarkable and the money is in safe hands with every penny going into research.  It will also completely fund a pilot project that will be potentially ground breaking in the battle to develop treatment for Lymphoma.  Hearing that news was more than i ever wished for and a great feeling.  We came away from the hospital with renewed hope and comforted by the fact that there is such an exceptional team behind my father and all the many others who suffer from Lymphoma....

...and, what now, post walk?  I found it very difficult getting back to normal life after crossing the finishing line and adjusting to an office routine in London again.  This was something i had been warned about and it took a good month to get back into the swing of things. It hit me how far i had walked when Ben and I got on the train at Edinburgh back down to London and i watched as the train whizzed past all the many little landmarks that i had seen on my journey. My sore foot (which i went on and on about) ended up being a stress fracture.  Poor old feet but, with a bit of rest, they are now back to normal.  My beloved walking boots have walked their last.  My father is keen to get them mounted in a glass case with a little plaque commemorating the distance they took me...not sure if there's any room in my flat?!  I still find myself automatically looking at the edge of roads to see if you could walk on them (oh dear) and i never thought that i would end up appreciating pavements so much!   Without question, the walk was the best thing i have ever done and easily the hardest.  To anyone who has a bright idea to raise money but feels that it's too daft or too difficult, go for it!  I am no athlete and i do remember looking at my feet and wondering if they'd ever get me all that way but they did - with a lot of support and the kindness of strangers, anything's possible.