7th April 2020

My life collapsed. Full world stopped due to pandemic and the lives of our wee family stopped due to diagnose we received regarding health of my beloved husband Maciej - terminal cancer…

The worse journey of our lives had just began.

Mentally our small family were in agony since we heard those two words

Million of questions in our heads and one, the biggest one - WHY? This question will always stay unanswered....

First weeks were brutal. I dropped everything as I was no able to focus on anything. Everything I did was on autopilot

After few weeks I found a wee bit strength in myself and was fighting for my beloved husband. However no matter where I emailed or phoned, I could always hear the same outcome which put me on my knees again. Each time getting up was extremely difficult.

Situation around the world was not helpful. We couldn’t do anything as the pandemic took over the world and the same tied our hands and the possibility for finding help. Our family’s stay 2000 km away and they could not visit us either.

Our friends became our family, they were helping as much as they could. The District Nurses, (Angels on the World), our Doctor, Colleagues from work and of course my amazing parkrun, who became our second family. We could rely on those people any time during the day and night.

Both my husband and I were very active before illness. We were both running, this is what made us happy. We took part in many races, from small family runs to ultra marathons. The passion of running made us even closer to each other.

My husband was the person that never complained, he was always positive and happy for others, he was liked by all those around him who he had the pleasure of meeting.

Illness was very difficult. Looking after someone you love and the thought that you cannot do anything was horrible. Infusion after infusion made my husband weaker and weaker. Unfortunately running exhausted him too much so we invested in a bike. The bike gave to my husband unbelievable pleasure. I still remember his face after each ride, happy face, exactly the face that I want to remember.

We both were volunteering at parkrun after covid restrictions has been lifted.

The community of parkrun quickly became of our second family. We enjoyed our new weekend routine.

Our mental health was totally traumatised, however we tried our best to get from life the best we could - especially for our kids. It is easy to say “just enjoy your life as much you can” - when you are facing illness like terminal cancer - those words are brutal.

Unfortunately, just before Christmas 2021 and before Maciej's 42nd birthday - the worse happened….

The community of parkrun helped me a lot mentally. Let me feel that I am needed, valued and an important part of the community. I feel like part of a puzzle and each person is a piece, when we are all together the puzzle is complete. This puzzle is infinity and any new people are always very welcome in the community. We support each other and treat with dignity and respect. Friendly atmosphere that you would like to enjoy each day of your life is always there.

In September 2023 I am planning to walk West Highland Way. It is 96 miles walk from Milngavie to Fort William in Scotland.

It was obvious for me that I will walk it in memory of my beloved husband. However, it took me long time to decide which charity I could support by doing this event.

At the one of the post parkrun coffee’s I heard about 5k Your Way. The 5k Your Way is initiative that linked with parkrun, is a supportive community for anyone affected by cancer to go along to their local group & walk, jog, run, cheer or volunteer on the last Saturday of the month. The 5kYour Way is initiative of MOVE charity. There's increasing evidence that moving more during and after cancer treatment can significantly improve physical & mental wellbeing. MOVE is embarking on a mission to support & inspire people to Move Against Cancer.

As soon I heard about it I knew, that it would be the charity I would like to support. The charity became closer to me right away, as it supports people who suffer from cancer and their families and it is connected with parkrun. The charity is encouraging people to be active, to join parkrun. There is no need to run or walk or even volunteering. Everyone can just come and feel part of the community, socialise with others and feel the support that is needed everyday by everyone.

I would love everyone to feel the support I received in the worse moment of my life. The support and feeling that I got was so important and will never be forgotten.

I would love this charity to expand and let others feel the positive vibes that come from being active, being part of parkrun, being part of the community that lifted me after the worst, that supported both of us and our kids through the worst time of our lives.

When you feel this is it, this is the end, there is always someone, someone who will help to lift you after the worst trauma of your life.

If you could, I would like to ask you to donate with me to this charity and let others feel the support and happiness of being important on this world - help others to feel that we have each other and we are not alone ❤️

Magda