Hey Brother

by Jackie Piper

Recently, I was driving with my 6-year-old grandson in the car listening to his favorite song, HEY BROTHER. There’s a line in the song that goes:

The babies who walked 22 miles (and their legs are so short!).

“If the sky came falling down for you,

There’s nothing in this world I wouldn’t do."

Eli asked me, “Hey Grandma, what does that mean?”  

Oh dear, how to explain a double negative to a 6-year-old! What I  told him was, it means that when life gets hard for you, there are very special people who would do ANYTHING to help you, to make your life better.  

Like walk 50 miles with you.

I’m amazed at the number of people who commit to this incredible weekend who have no immediate family member affected by MS. Those people are there out of friendship, because they have a friend whose life has been affected by MS.

Have you ever seen the commercial with the guy trying to get his friends to help him move? They all make up excuses as to why they can’t help him. Not so our Challenge Walk friends!

We call them and say: "Do you want to spend the weekend with me and walk 50 miles, possibly in rain, wind, and 45-degree temperatures with blisters, aching muscles, sore feet, and exhaustion? Oh, and by the way, could you bring at least $1,500 with you?"

And, incredibly, they come.

Look around this September and you will see the “friends” of Challenge Walk on every team. You may have noticed the pregnant ladies on the walk last year. One was my daughter, Annie, whose husband has MS, and one was her friend, Vanessa. They walked 22½ miles over the three days. Now that, my friend, is a friend indeed.

I raise my glass to Vanessa, Molly, Lacey, Debbie and all of YOUR friends who answer the call and say: There’s nothing in this world I wouldn’t do.