The 17th World Transplant Games on the Gold Coast of Queensland, Australia are finished. For ten days I flew among people from over 50 countries, each of whom share the transplant experience. The dreamlike trance from which I awoke upon returning to the smokey skies of LA made earth seem like heaven. What if you had 10, 20, 50, or 100 friends whose names you never knew, but whose hearts you identified with immediately once introduced?
But as you probably know, all flights to heaven with butterfly wings only last as long as an eclipse. The light shines so intensely you believe that life is always so. It's only when the eclipse has passed, you realized its magnificent glow.
Although my goal was to finish number "1," my numbers of destiny were "1" and "8." And indeed in the 5K Bicycle Time Trial and in the 20K Bicycle Road Race, I finished 8th. Each time I gave what I had, but I didn't quite make it. Maybe for the next World Transplant Games, my number of destiny will simply be "1." Of course, that won't be easy since the next World Transplant Games begins on June 18, 2011. In the meantime, it's time to prepare for next year's U.S. Transplant Games and return to my profession as a teacher and my graduate studies. It's time to become a caterpillar again and prepare for another few days of heaven on earth at the 18th World Transplant Games, June 18-25, 2001 in Goteborg, Sweden.
To All my Supporters.
Thank you.
