Atlanta is the Spring is glorious, between the Bradford Pear trees, Dogwoods, Azaleas, and Camellias. It can take your breath away. (And if you're an allergy sufferer, the extremely high pollen counts- that would be pine tree pollen- might literally take your breath away without a surgical mask!)
In spite of the pollen, and surrounded by the flora and wonderful weather this weekend, I will be taking a special Springtime walk.
Tomorrow is the annual Foundation Fighting Blindness (FFB) 5K VisionWalk. So far, the Atlanta Chapter has raised $104,000 for research. Go Atlanta!! That beats last year's total of $100,000 and money can "bloom" until the end of June.
I'm the co-captain of the Atlanta S.P.A.R Team. We chose the name because we're sparring (fighting) to find a treatment/cure for our retinal conditions and because the letters stand for the 3 guidelines our chapter represents: Support, Public Awareness, and Research. I tried the letters in different arrangements but somehow RAPS, SRAP, ASPR, RASP, PRAS, and PARS didn't make sense. Thus, we became the SPAR Team Good thing our guidelines/principles didn't spell out DORK or SPAZ or SH*T!!!
If you're looking to take a walk on Sunday March 25th, in Atlanta, join us at noonish on the meadow at Piedmont Park. You can't miss us. We'll be 700+ people, some with white canes, some with guide dogs, and many fully sighted folks all walking in support of finding a way to prevent blindness. Our slogan: A Cure Is In Sight!