How tough is the color pink?

I don't wear pink. It's just now my color. I rarely even wear red (that's mainly did to my distain for North Carolina State University). I just stay away from that section of the color spectrum.

After all, I'm an Oakland Raiders fan. "Real men wear black." I'm a Tarheel, I can't be seen in any shade of red or pink. And let's not even get into the Red Sox. Argh, I hate that color. And like I said, that hatred has seemed to spread to its cousin pink. Guys just can't look tough in pink. Ever see any biker gangs in pink? What about ninjas in kungfu movies. Never in pink. I even got paranoid when my three-year-olds favorite color was pink for a while. Luckily, that too did pass.

But this past weekend, I was involved with something that showed me the real strength that color represents.

I've been doing some running lately to counteract the fact that my metabolism is slowing and my penchant for sweets is ever increasing. I wanted to run in some sort of organized event, somewhere I got to wear a number like I was an Olympian. My wife suggested (there's that phrase again) that I run in the Susan G Komen race. My mom is a breast cancer survivor so that has a special place in my heart. I signed up to do the recreational run because the competitive run sounded a little too intimidating.

So I show up on Saturday morning with my running shoes and my headphones ready to dash. Only problem was there were about 20 thousand people in my way clogging the streets. Mothers, grandmothers, teenagers, guys pushing strollers. This was a mass of humanity. At that point I realized this was less about me running a little over 3 miles this morning and more about the courageous journey these women were on. I remember the fight that my mom successfully won against her cancer. I remember how tough she was and the fact that she never complained. She fought through the pain and the chemo and the losing of her hair with grace and courage that I admire deeply. I also think of a friend who lost her battle earlier this year with the same disease. She trusted God through the entire journey that he had a plan for her. She knew her fight was bigger than her and that God would take care of her husband and two young sons.

As I walked, I read the notes of celebration or honor for loved ones that had experienced this disease. While watching football yesterday, I asked my wife why the NFL had chosen this disease as a focus. The players and coaches were wearing pink armbands or towels and pink-trimmed hats in tribute. Then, I thought back to Saturday and the fact that we all have mothers or grandmothers, sisters or aunts, or someone who'd been affected.

So on Saturday, I saw how tough pink is. It represents strength, couarge, and hope.

To end on a lighter note, here are some of the top slogans I saw on t-shirts or posters. Normally, these things said in public would be offensive or given a weird glance. But in this case, they were celebrated:

Running for Ra Ra's Ta Ta's

Helping save the A's, B's, C's, and DD's

We're breast friends

GRITS for ..

OK, you get the point.

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