Day 251: Walking the (Heart) Walk

Yesterday, for the first time, I did the Heart Walk in Boston, which was sponsored by the American Heart Association.

I was so engrossed in taking in everything around me,  I didn’t take very many pictures.

So prepare for a short photo essay.

Here we go ….

My Day At the Heart Walk

by Ann

I drove there with Michelle, a wonderful nurse I know. Michelle and I arrived at the Hatch Shell, on Boston’s Esplanade, around 9:45, about 45 minutes before the official beginning of the walk.

The Hatch Shell, on the Esplanade:

(That is not a photo I took yesterday, as you probably figured out on your own.)

I decided to pick up a Red Cap, which they were giving out to anyone who was a “heart disease survivor.”

(By the way, that’s not a photo I took yesterday, either.  That photo, plus the next two, are from the Boston Heart Walk website.)

RIght before the official start of the walk, they invited people with Red Caps to go up into The Hatch Shell,  to give “The Red Cap Wave.”

It was inspiring and strange to be up there, for me.

This is similar to  the view I had from the Hatch Shell, yesterday morning, as I was doin’ The Red Cap Wave (although I don’t remember any metal barricades).

No matter what was between me and the other walkers, I know the crowd yelled and clapped, very loudly, during the Red Cap Wave.

Then, Michelle and I stood in line to get some little foam baseballs signed by Luis Tiant, Rick Miller, and Jim Rice, from the Red Sox. While we were waiting in line, I saw Mark, a wonderful social worker I know.  I was especially glad to see Mark, because we had planned on walking together, and I had thought that I might not be able to find him before the start of the walk.  No worries (as usual).

I don’t have a photo of Jim Rice, Luis Tiant, and Rick Miller signing baseballs from yesterday,  but here’s a shot of the little foam baseball.

After we got our baseballs signed, we were off on the Heart Walk!

Here’s the first photo I took yesterday:

As you can see, it was a beeeeooootiful day.

And such a beautiful route.

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That’s Michelle and Mark.  When I had picked up my Red Cap earlier, they asked Michelle if she wanted that sign/sticker, in support of me.  She carried that, all six friggin’ miles.

More things I saw along the way:

That’s one of the many cheerleaders we saw during the walk. After we passed her, and were crossing the Charles River, here’s a view back to where we had just been walking:

Here’s Mark and an unidentified dog, on the other side of the Charles River:

We saw lots of dogs and kids, doing the Heart Walk.

Then we crossed the Charles River, again, from the Cambridge side back to the Boston side:

And, before we knew it, the finish line!

Phew!  It was a great day.

Thanks to Michelle, Mark, the American Heart Association, Jim Rice, Rick Miller, and Luis Tiant (and other Red Sox players past, present, and future),  walkers, cheerleaders, my incredibly generous supporters,  and to you, too, for reading today.