I remember one of my earliest attempts
at writing a love poem
and how difficult it was to find anything
original to say.

I had a mentor, named Martin Kirby,
back then,
in what I’d call my other life.
Martin told me I shouldn’t write love poems
because it’s too hard to find something
original to say,
“everything imaginable about love
has already been said.”

This was at a time
before I had ever read a poem
of mine to anyone besides
him and his wife…
before anyone other than he
and maybe myself,
had ever referred to me
as a poet.

He knew I had lost someone
very close to me,
and at this early stage in my development
as a poet, he was right,
I could not find the ability to separate
my feelings from what I wanted
to express.

How I wanted to express
certain feelings and experiences
that were so powerful -
they needed to be shared.

There’s one experience -
I still remember it,
probably 17 years later -
that I tried to capture in a poem.

I hoped to bring the reader
into my experience,
see what I was seeing
and understand
the love I felt…
but I had it wrong.

In the scene,
three of us are walking
in a small field -
the girl I loved,
myself and her friend,
that we had come to visit.

We came upon a swing
and as I remember it,
I’m in front of her
pushing her gently…

It wasn’t the way her hair
was caught in the sunlight
in front of me,
it wasn’t the smooth
calming, undulating motion
of the swing.

It was what happened in that moment.
For a moment there,
how long, I don’t know,
half a minute or ten minutes,
but as I remember it
everything faded from our awareness.

It was hypnotic…
I knew that all of her attention,
was on me…
I’m very certain of this…
this was not the first time,
we’d had an experience like this.

I still remember that moment,
now, nearly 17 years later –
that moment when she and I
were aware of nothing
but each other,
for just a moment.

I still remember that moment.

Why?

Because at that point in time,
there was someone
who that interested in me,
that fascinated in me.

I don’t think about this very often.
I’m often more convinced
of the opposite
seeing very little of myself
in the eyes of others.

2/26/09

I’m writing about a cause that is very dear to me – an event sponsored by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation is sponsoring an event on May 2nd, in Chapel Hill, called Great Strides to raise funds to support research to find a cure for Cystic Fibrosis. There are other events around this time in other cities and other teams that will participate.

The reason this is important to me is because sometime back between 1993 and 1994, I fell in love with a girl, named Lynn Krupey, who has Cystic Fibrosis (CF), a chronic inherited disease, which affects the digestive system and lungs (affecting breathing). In 1994 we got engaged. At that time, we were 28 and the lifespan for people with CF was roughly 30 or so. However, for those first several years, her health was far better than the “typical” person with CF.

So, for years I lived in denial or I had believed/hoped that the “cure” would come before it was too late before the disease would get the best of her. That strategy did not work too well for me, because back in 2000, she started getting sick. It had happened so suddenly the turn in her health, or so it seemed. There is nothing more terrifying than seeing the person you love, more than anything in the world, gasping for air, unable to get enough air to even move from room to room.

I realize that cures don’t just come.  Research costs money, as does the treatment of this disease.

When this happened, I felt that there was nothing I could do. I was scared, overwhelmed and I felt powerless. Now, looking back to when that happened, I feel there are things that can be done.

It is in the spirit of believing that there are things that can be done, that I am writing this letter to you. They are getting closer and closer to a cure and treatments are extending and improving the lives of those with CF.

I would like to ask for your help to make a difference by simply making a donation of $25, $50, $100, or whatever you can afford for the GREAT STRIDES walk on May 2nd, in Chapel Hill, NC. There are other similar events in other cities on this day and others during April and May. Unlike some walks, where you sponsor someone for a certain amount per mile, this is setup where we just ask for a flat donation (or donations). If you would, please make a donation to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF) using your credit card, by visiting my team’s page on the CF Foundation’s website. Just go to:
http://www.cff.org/great_strides/BruceWhealton6104/

When you make a donation on that page, it goes straight to our team, which just helps me see that my efforts to raise funds for the CFF are working.  Every penny counts, so please do not feel like you have to make a great contribution, or any at all. Thank you in advance for being part of this very important cause. Together we are adding tomorrows every day.

Cystic fibrosis is a genetic disease affecting approximately 30,000 children and adults in the United States. A defective gene causes the body to produce abnormally thick, sticky mucus. The abnormal mucus leads to chronic and life-threatening lung infections and impairs digestion. Currently there is no cure, and the median age of survival for a person with cystic fibrosis is 36.8 years.

The CF Foundation has consistently been recognized as one of the top voluntary health organizations in the country at efficiently using its money raised to invest in research and medical programs. By investing in the CFF you are helping to fund the landmark research that will, one day, make a tremendous difference in the lives of those with the disease. With your help, we can give the children and adults with CF the quality of life and the future they deserve.

Please support my efforts by clicking here:  http://www.cff.org/great_strides/BruceWhealton6104/

Trying to make CF stand for “Cure Found,”

Bruce Whealton