Annie began the day of her every-two-months doctor's appointment at 4:30 AM. She had to rise early and get to Disneyland in time for her first 5K. We had run this race three years earlier (and many since) with Katherine but Annie's health always kept her at home. In fact nine years of low platelets and hemoglobin have kept her away from most athletics besides dance.
Still in the dark, the runners waited to cross under the start gate into Disneyland and Tom couldn't help but well-up. This was a moment he never thought he'd have with Annie. But just a year after her second transplant it happened and she beamed every step of the way. As they came around the first corner there was the Cars' Land mesa lit in splendor against the dark and Annie reached out and squeezed Tom's hand as they ran. Cars was a movie they had watched many times during the long hours it took to receive blood transfusions.
They whooshed by favorite ride after favorite ride as the runners had the park all to themselves. When they approached the first mile mark it flashed 11-minutes. Tom had secretly hoped they'd keep a 12-minute mile pace but Annie was going strong. Again and again she would reach out and grab his hand as they relived cherished memories of park visits. They would go to Disneyland together to help soften the blow when she couldn't attend school trips or parties that she wasn't in shape to attend.
Mile two slipped past them this time in the 10-minute mile range. The sun came up and the crowd thinned out as other racers dropped behind. Smiling and rejoicing they ran steadily through mile marker three again around 10-minutes and then they crossed the finish-line at 32:59!
Annie proudly shared her news with her doctors at that afternoon's appointment where she again enjoyed healthy blood counts and got a pass to start her last year at her K-8 school without any of the restrictions from the prior eight years. What a day.
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