I ordered my Livestrong wristbands a couple of weeks before Lance's first Tour of his comeback. But something went wrong with my order or shipping and I had to wait and wait and wait for my package to arrive... But when I finally found it in my mailbox, I was delighted. Finally! I was officially part of the Livestrong (Armstrong?) community.
For the next years, I never even thought about taking the yellow thing off my wrist. It was like a tattoo, it was there to stay. Even when Lance retired from cycling, even when he left the organisation he founded over ten years ago. Even when he admitted he doped himself to win the Tour seven times! So why did I suddenly had enough of the thing around my wrist?Honestly, a couple of months ago it just started
bothering me. I had been wearing it for too long I guess and I was that used to it that it had lost all meaning. It was just something around my wrist, something that was always there. It has never been about Lance (Surprise, not everything is about Lance!). To me it just had lost the meaning of supporting an organisation fighting against cancer, and exactly that was the goal of the wristbands.
And now...I'm proud to put that yellow band back on my wrist. I might take it off sometimes and watch at it, and remind myself what it stands for. For standing together against a disease that kills millions of people each year. For fighting together so we can lower the amount of cancer deaths. Not for the man who founded it, but for the disease he fought. Let's live strong!
Catya Leroux
