Seeing Yellow
If you notice something slightly different about Jon Lester when he takes the mound tonight, you’re not imagining things: he’ll forego his normal gear and will be wearing a yellow glove and yellow spikes during every home game in July to help raise cancer awareness.
As reported by Ian Browne yesterday, Jonny Boy is taking part in Nike/Lance Armstrong’s LIVESTRONG campaign – the same folks that brought you the ubiquitous yellow wristbands. He’s just one of several pro athletes who are helping launch the Wear Yellow campaign and website. And part of that campaign includes a (rather touching) video vignette about Jon’s trials and tribulations with cancer:
Courtesy of Ian Browne, here’s the transcription:
For me, when I face a hitter, I’m not going to give in. Whoever it is at the plate. I’m not going to give in to them.
Getting cancer, it was a big shock all of a sudden. You get your legs taken from under you. There were some days in there where I felt sorry for myself but once I got over those days, it was, ‘OK, I’m going to attack this with my best stuff.’ Getting back to the mound was harder than I thought it would be — it was going to be like riding a bike. Get down to Spring Training, get in shape, start throwing, get people out. It didn’t really work that way. It was a struggle. But once I got there, it was kind of like business as usual. Go out there and pitch.
If you’re me, and you’re in my shoes, and you get diagnosed with cancer, would you give up and not want to get back to baseball?
Without being overly melodramatic, that is seriously powerful stuff. And that Jon is willing to be vulnerable enough to not only share his fears, but also a picture of him at his lowest point during his battle with cancer, speaks volumes about his character and commitment to the cause.
After reading this yesterday, and in honor of Jon and his continued fight for cancer awareness, I confess I got sappy enough to go and add the little yellow band around my twitter icon, and send in a donation to the American Cancer Society. It may be small, but I figure every little bit helps.
aw. it brought tears to my eyes. Thanks for sharing it with us, Texy.
(ps: why is the stadium not fenway?)
I’ve been waiting to see this since the advertisement first aired and it really warms my heart; to see him go from a low & uncertain point in his life back to the top of his game is phenomenally inspiring and sharing his story reminds us that this disease touches everyone. Perhaps this is just my bias as a fan, but I’ve always felt that the Red Sox are among the most human of athletic teams, if that makes any sense. I think we often give an air of intangibility to the people we idolize but I’ve never felt that way with the Sox; instead, there is this feeling of genuineness that surrounds them & Lester’s battle with cancer, which he tells with such a quiet confidence, is another extension of this sentiment.
Thanks for posting; my day is a little brighter.
And just for the extra tear-jerk …
“He’s not just a good kid because he threw a no-hitter. He’s a good kid because he’s a good kid.” [Terry Francona]
@everafter: I suspect because they didn’t/couldn’t work out the licensing rights. They would’ve had to pay out the wazoo to secure the rights to show Red Sox logos or the ballpark – and I’m pretty sure MLB’s official gear-maker Majestic would be peeved to see competitor Nike being officially endorsed.
I think I have something in my eye…
Just another reason to love Jon Lester, as if we needed more. :)
That is great. Makes me cry….. My husband rides in the PMC in 3 weeks and standing next to the kid with the sign that says “because of you I’m 12 years old.” makes me cry…..
It wasn’t so long ago when Jon didn’t want to talk about cancer at all so he wouldn’t be “the pitcher who had cancer.” I remember some people criticizing him for that, but I thought that with a little more distance and maturity, he’d see what he could contribute, and wouldn’t back away from that.
He sure grew up nice.
Oh, eff me, the picture didn’t show up … carry on.
Great post, Texy, thank you for putting the video up. The photo of him, bald and hugging his dog, brought tears to my eyes. What a brave thing to open yourself up like that.
And I hope he seriously kicks ass tonight.
I love him.
Like everyone else, I have tears in my eyes. How is it possible not to?