[Applause]
so if you’re able I’d like you to take
your right leg and circle it in a
clockwise direction and then while
you’re continuing to circle it in a
clockwise direction I want you to take
your right hand and write the number six
okay it’s a little bit dark in here but
I can hear some new laughing which is a
great thing too but I’m having a feeling
that you’re having difficulty doing this
reason being the mind is a powerful
powerful tool the mind has the ability
to rewire the body I’m going to touch on
this later in my speech of keep that in
mind I also want you to know the power
of the brain as well because once I did
that trick while speaking to a group of
young children and I had a kid raised
their hand and they said well mr. ena
you can do it and I was like really okay
and I love the can attitude I’m talking
on that too and he said yeah you can do
it I figured out a way if you write it
may be an unconventional way starting at
the bottom and looping it up backwards
it’s possible pretty cool so I’m a
professional runner with a leg scratch I
once called it a boo-boo but a
kindergartener in my neighborhood said
boo-boos are for babies call it a leg
scratch my leg scratch is the result of
two bouts with synovial sarcoma a rare
cancer in the soft tissue once in 2010
and then again just several months ago
in August it was something I never
expected to experience as a young
healthy mother runner but that’s why I
appreciated the challenge from the
kindergartner in my neighborhood when
life goes unplanned sometimes you need
to change your perspective toughen up
and not be a baby easier said than done
I know pretty much when I was diagnosed
the first time I was like a child who
just realized that there’s emoji faces
in your cell phone and I went through
the full gamut I was all over the place
but I recovered from that by activating
a different kind of mindset so today I
invite you to open up your mind and your
heart to a new way of looking at tough
situations by focusing on what you can
control and the can
in your life when I was first told that
I had cancer I let it kind of take over
for a few days and then I realized you
know what Sarina
there are very few things that you can
control in life but something even more
powerful of that then that is that the
two things you can control in your life
is your attitude and your response to
situations it’s pretty powerful of
course I came about this realisation
after throwing myself a pity party and I
was kind of thinking a thought that was
manifesting itself deep down into my
still in my soul as a professional
runner I finally allowed myself to think
the thought of all places for my tumor
and my cancer to be growing why my leg
and the answer came back to me with
instant clarity which doesn’t always
happen in life and it was the fact that
the tumor is in your leg has essentially
saved your life because you are in tune
with your legs and they’re so important
to you as a runner you paid attention
you went to the doctor you got it
scanned it was a gift that my cancer was
in my leg my pity party was over the
gift was received and my attitude was
changed I changed it in everyday life
I’m generally was even up to that point
a really positive person who lived
without regrets and love deeply and you
know forgave but it did challenge me
over and over again to just have having
to make the conscious choice to choose
positivity sometimes that looked like
laughing instead of crying like when my
husband and I were we’re talking soon
after my initial diagnosis and he said
his best Arnold Schwarzenegger voice
it’s not doom because we so desperately
wished it wasn’t or this time around
when it was a little bit new and raw and
he said you know the lottery is up
really high and you were just a ghost
for the second time with a rare cancer
you’re lucky person you should go buy
your ticket
but I chose to be in control of my life
and my perspective this time around when
I went into my doctor with a new lump in
my leg he was the one asking lies when
he confirmed with 99% certainty that the
cancer was indeed back he just kept
saying stirring I’m so sorry I don’t
know why it’s back seven years ago we
took out the tumor we took out a large
portion of your biceps femoris muscle
which is a hamstring in your leg I don’t
I don’t know why this is back I’m just
so so sorry
and me using the tools that I’ve been
equipped with the first time around with
cancer i sat there pretty content in
that piece and and then he looked at me
and he really looked at me and took in
the whole aura and he said Serena you’re
handling this news really well and I
said doctor you gave me seven years to
pursue running that I didn’t think I
would have seven years ago you know I
don’t know why I got cancer in the first
place I don’t know why it’s back again
you deal with cancer every day all day
long
we’re not gonna control of that cancer
but you know what we can decide where we
go from here let’s make a treatment plan
what does your schedule look like in
terms of when I can schedule surgery to
have this new tumor out so a week later
I was in surgery and the nurse came in
and she said do you have any requests
and I said well I’d like to be able to
get half someone help me get up and not
use the bedpan that was one and the
second one was surround me with
positivity because that’s what they were
gonna get from me when we describe
someone as a valiant fighter it’s really
about their attitude isn’t it it’s not
so much about their battle but their
attitude focus on what you can control
and that was me several days after
surgery they’re actually a couple hours
after surgery
my second point that I want you to hear
today is to focus on the cans in your
life for me I say it’s going hand in
hand with the one before because I call
it taking control of the can and cancer
when you’re faced with something you
didn’t expect are really tough times you
can surround yourself with an amazing
support system sometimes it’s people
you’ve known your whole life sometimes
it’s someone you’ve just met sometimes
it’s just telling your short story or
sharing your struggle and having a whole
community support you for me a person
that was incredibly instrumental with
keeping me positive and helping me
through my cancer diagnosis is both
times was my coach and he continued to
coach me using interchangeable running
and life lessons another person was my
doctor he kept the door open for hope
telling me stories of survival and
people overcoming the odds together the
three of us actually talked about
different things and we established
three goals and the goals were one saved
my life because if that didn’t happen we
really didn’t need to make any other
goals to save my leg and honestly three
anything else after that is total bonus
and of course do you know we gear up
first the things like I was thinking
surgery was gonna be like the big thing
my first time around you know so we gear
up and we stay strong through that but
changing and controlling your attitude
is always a work in progress so when I
went back to my doctor for a follow-up
visit following my first surgery I
remember telling him doctor I still
can’t and he cut me off with a smirk and
he said get out of here we’re done and I
realized at that moment that I had
already exceeded his expectations for
where I would be post-surgery and I also
realized something even more important
if I was going to reach my full
potential
I would need to ban
the contraction can’t from my vocabulary
it’s still something that I try and do
today in my house it’s a rule you can’t
say the word can’t which has backfired
several times because now I have an 8
year old son and he’ll say mommy you
just said can’t in response to him
saying can we please go visit some
far-off country to pet an exotic animal
in the next five minutes but I built
this idea of can in my house and for my
son and for people around me and he’s
gotten it in fact this time around
he was probably my biggest cheerleader
for my recovery
it was hard the first time he was only
one so he didn’t really know what was
going on but this time to have me
sidelined was tough for him but he still
focused on the cans we’re competitive in
my household
obviously with me as a competitive
runner we’re pretty competitive and so
he would say okay mommy
I think you can make it up the stairs if
I give you a 20-second head start from
me
you can hobble up and then we can be
close at the finish line so he’d say go
and want to and I’d be hobbling up the
steps you know probably a dangerous
thing to do maybe I shouldn’t recommend
doing something like that but but he
kept it positive and we focused on the
cans and we were able to continue to to
make things better and the things about
can is it doesn’t mean you’re content
with where you are or a lose sight of
where you want to go it just means that
you’re living in the moment being the
best version of you at that point in
time by opening myself up to the cans in
life I also allowed my body no
preconceived expectations or limits and
by doing this I really allowed it to
defy science I was evaluated soon after
my first surgery by my physical
therapist and you know he was doing the
regular things they do
checking range of motion strength just
kind of getting a baseline of where I
was and then we were reading the
surgical notes provided by my doctor
and he was like you know Serena judging
by what you can do your doctor forgot to
write in the surgical notes that he
reattached this part of your hamstring
and the several days later I went into
physical therapy and he said I talked to
your surgeon it wasn’t a mistake that
part of your hamstring is gone having a
positive mindset allowed my body to
rewire itself little by little one step
at a time just focusing on where I was
at that moment I was actually able to
return to running and several months
later my coach and I realized that I had
been given another gift to return to
competitive running we didn’t know how
far I could go with it
but we were willing to to take that
journey and see where it led I can now
say that my legs scratch and I have run
12 competitive marathons those of you
that are marathoners in this room i’ve
run two hours 26 minutes and 53 seconds
it’s it’s not a it’s not a snail pace
and I’ve had the opportunity to
represent the United States in two World
Championships one this past August with
actually the tumour still in my leg this
is life prize it doesn’t always go as
planned we get knocked down we get we
get back up so I’ve had a pretty awesome
journey I can also say that I have
started running post-second surgery so
that’s pretty exciting too I was once
asked in an interview if I thought
having cancer was a blessing in disguise
that’s a tough question I didn’t have an
answer for it then and I don’t have an
answer for it still today but I know
better than to rule out the possibility
of having an answer someday the truth of
the matter is we all have a cancer we
will all face something in our lives
that will stop us in our track and
threaten to take control
how will you respond if a chunk of my
hamstring can go missing and become
merely a leg scratch and a positive
mindset can free me from my
circumstances anything is possible
focus on what you can control and the
cans in your life I know you guys have
it in you thank you
you
so if you’re able I’d like you to take
your right leg and circle it in a
clockwise direction and then while
you’re continuing to circle it in a
clockwise direction I want you to take
your right hand and write the number six
okay it’s a little bit dark in here but
I can hear some new laughing which is a
great thing too but I’m having a feeling
that you’re having difficulty doing this
reason being the mind is a powerful
powerful tool the mind has the ability
to rewire the body I’m going to touch on
this later in my speech of keep that in
mind I also want you to know the power
of the brain as well because once I did
that trick while speaking to a group of
young children and I had a kid raised
their hand and they said well mr. ena
you can do it and I was like really okay
and I love the can attitude I’m talking
on that too and he said yeah you can do
it I figured out a way if you write it
may be an unconventional way starting at
the bottom and looping it up backwards
it’s possible pretty cool so I’m a
professional runner with a leg scratch I
once called it a boo-boo but a
kindergartener in my neighborhood said
boo-boos are for babies call it a leg
scratch my leg scratch is the result of
two bouts with synovial sarcoma a rare
cancer in the soft tissue once in 2010
and then again just several months ago
in August it was something I never
expected to experience as a young
healthy mother runner but that’s why I
appreciated the challenge from the
kindergartner in my neighborhood when
life goes unplanned sometimes you need
to change your perspective toughen up
and not be a baby easier said than done
I know pretty much when I was diagnosed
the first time I was like a child who
just realized that there’s emoji faces
in your cell phone and I went through
the full gamut I was all over the place
but I recovered from that by activating
a different kind of mindset so today I
invite you to open up your mind and your
heart to a new way of looking at tough
situations by focusing on what you can
control and the can
in your life when I was first told that
I had cancer I let it kind of take over
for a few days and then I realized you
know what Sarina
there are very few things that you can
control in life but something even more
powerful of that then that is that the
two things you can control in your life
is your attitude and your response to
situations it’s pretty powerful of
course I came about this realisation
after throwing myself a pity party and I
was kind of thinking a thought that was
manifesting itself deep down into my
still in my soul as a professional
runner I finally allowed myself to think
the thought of all places for my tumor
and my cancer to be growing why my leg
and the answer came back to me with
instant clarity which doesn’t always
happen in life and it was the fact that
the tumor is in your leg has essentially
saved your life because you are in tune
with your legs and they’re so important
to you as a runner you paid attention
you went to the doctor you got it
scanned it was a gift that my cancer was
in my leg my pity party was over the
gift was received and my attitude was
changed I changed it in everyday life
I’m generally was even up to that point
a really positive person who lived
without regrets and love deeply and you
know forgave but it did challenge me
over and over again to just have having
to make the conscious choice to choose
positivity sometimes that looked like
laughing instead of crying like when my
husband and I were we’re talking soon
after my initial diagnosis and he said
his best Arnold Schwarzenegger voice
it’s not doom because we so desperately
wished it wasn’t or this time around
when it was a little bit new and raw and
he said you know the lottery is up
really high and you were just a ghost
for the second time with a rare cancer
you’re lucky person you should go buy
your ticket
but I chose to be in control of my life
and my perspective this time around when
I went into my doctor with a new lump in
my leg he was the one asking lies when
he confirmed with 99% certainty that the
cancer was indeed back he just kept
saying stirring I’m so sorry I don’t
know why it’s back seven years ago we
took out the tumor we took out a large
portion of your biceps femoris muscle
which is a hamstring in your leg I don’t
I don’t know why this is back I’m just
so so sorry
and me using the tools that I’ve been
equipped with the first time around with
cancer i sat there pretty content in
that piece and and then he looked at me
and he really looked at me and took in
the whole aura and he said Serena you’re
handling this news really well and I
said doctor you gave me seven years to
pursue running that I didn’t think I
would have seven years ago you know I
don’t know why I got cancer in the first
place I don’t know why it’s back again
you deal with cancer every day all day
long
we’re not gonna control of that cancer
but you know what we can decide where we
go from here let’s make a treatment plan
what does your schedule look like in
terms of when I can schedule surgery to
have this new tumor out so a week later
I was in surgery and the nurse came in
and she said do you have any requests
and I said well I’d like to be able to
get half someone help me get up and not
use the bedpan that was one and the
second one was surround me with
positivity because that’s what they were
gonna get from me when we describe
someone as a valiant fighter it’s really
about their attitude isn’t it it’s not
so much about their battle but their
attitude focus on what you can control
and that was me several days after
surgery they’re actually a couple hours
after surgery
my second point that I want you to hear
today is to focus on the cans in your
life for me I say it’s going hand in
hand with the one before because I call
it taking control of the can and cancer
when you’re faced with something you
didn’t expect are really tough times you
can surround yourself with an amazing
support system sometimes it’s people
you’ve known your whole life sometimes
it’s someone you’ve just met sometimes
it’s just telling your short story or
sharing your struggle and having a whole
community support you for me a person
that was incredibly instrumental with
keeping me positive and helping me
through my cancer diagnosis is both
times was my coach and he continued to
coach me using interchangeable running
and life lessons another person was my
doctor he kept the door open for hope
telling me stories of survival and
people overcoming the odds together the
three of us actually talked about
different things and we established
three goals and the goals were one saved
my life because if that didn’t happen we
really didn’t need to make any other
goals to save my leg and honestly three
anything else after that is total bonus
and of course do you know we gear up
first the things like I was thinking
surgery was gonna be like the big thing
my first time around you know so we gear
up and we stay strong through that but
changing and controlling your attitude
is always a work in progress so when I
went back to my doctor for a follow-up
visit following my first surgery I
remember telling him doctor I still
can’t and he cut me off with a smirk and
he said get out of here we’re done and I
realized at that moment that I had
already exceeded his expectations for
where I would be post-surgery and I also
realized something even more important
if I was going to reach my full
potential
I would need to ban
the contraction can’t from my vocabulary
it’s still something that I try and do
today in my house it’s a rule you can’t
say the word can’t which has backfired
several times because now I have an 8
year old son and he’ll say mommy you
just said can’t in response to him
saying can we please go visit some
far-off country to pet an exotic animal
in the next five minutes but I built
this idea of can in my house and for my
son and for people around me and he’s
gotten it in fact this time around
he was probably my biggest cheerleader
for my recovery
it was hard the first time he was only
one so he didn’t really know what was
going on but this time to have me
sidelined was tough for him but he still
focused on the cans we’re competitive in
my household
obviously with me as a competitive
runner we’re pretty competitive and so
he would say okay mommy
I think you can make it up the stairs if
I give you a 20-second head start from
me
you can hobble up and then we can be
close at the finish line so he’d say go
and want to and I’d be hobbling up the
steps you know probably a dangerous
thing to do maybe I shouldn’t recommend
doing something like that but but he
kept it positive and we focused on the
cans and we were able to continue to to
make things better and the things about
can is it doesn’t mean you’re content
with where you are or a lose sight of
where you want to go it just means that
you’re living in the moment being the
best version of you at that point in
time by opening myself up to the cans in
life I also allowed my body no
preconceived expectations or limits and
by doing this I really allowed it to
defy science I was evaluated soon after
my first surgery by my physical
therapist and you know he was doing the
regular things they do
checking range of motion strength just
kind of getting a baseline of where I
was and then we were reading the
surgical notes provided by my doctor
and he was like you know Serena judging
by what you can do your doctor forgot to
write in the surgical notes that he
reattached this part of your hamstring
and the several days later I went into
physical therapy and he said I talked to
your surgeon it wasn’t a mistake that
part of your hamstring is gone having a
positive mindset allowed my body to
rewire itself little by little one step
at a time just focusing on where I was
at that moment I was actually able to
return to running and several months
later my coach and I realized that I had
been given another gift to return to
competitive running we didn’t know how
far I could go with it
but we were willing to to take that
journey and see where it led I can now
say that my legs scratch and I have run
12 competitive marathons those of you
that are marathoners in this room i’ve
run two hours 26 minutes and 53 seconds
it’s it’s not a it’s not a snail pace
and I’ve had the opportunity to
represent the United States in two World
Championships one this past August with
actually the tumour still in my leg this
is life prize it doesn’t always go as
planned we get knocked down we get we
get back up so I’ve had a pretty awesome
journey I can also say that I have
started running post-second surgery so
that’s pretty exciting too I was once
asked in an interview if I thought
having cancer was a blessing in disguise
that’s a tough question I didn’t have an
answer for it then and I don’t have an
answer for it still today but I know
better than to rule out the possibility
of having an answer someday the truth of
the matter is we all have a cancer we
will all face something in our lives
that will stop us in our track and
threaten to take control
how will you respond if a chunk of my
hamstring can go missing and become
merely a leg scratch and a positive
mindset can free me from my
circumstances anything is possible
focus on what you can control and the
cans in your life I know you guys have
it in you thank you
you
Please follow and like us: