Team NSH

Round 2 of chemo began today, and like the true champ that she is, Nan rocked her new tee shirt emblazoned with the new family motto:

Fight Like Hell

Just a scant few hours after completing her second round of chemo, mom was talking and told a great story.  Mom was feeling eyes on her all day from one of the nurses on the floor who wasn’t her own nurse.  After seeing her looking in at mom a few times, she finally came in to remark that she loved mom’s shirt, and thought it perfectly epitomized her spirit.

Mom has never been a physically formidable woman, but she’s always walked amongst the biggest of men when it comes to her spirit. There are more stories of her tenacity and fight than any simple blog post could ever recall.  For a woman who could fit inside a carry on, she has the heart of a giant.  I’m sure that’s why I married the pitbull of a wife that I married, because I found some of those qualities in her that I respect and admire more than I can ever put into words.  My mother’s strength, and willingness to FIGHT LIKE HELL when she’s needed to most of all has helped to make me the man I’ve become today.   I will never quit,  I will never give up, and there’s never been a fight I’m too scared to take head on.

The shirts started as a cute way to show our support for mom, but it’s blossomed into far, far more than that.  It’s become our motto, our rallying cry.  Today, her account tweeted

Chemo round 2 underway now #fightlikehell

Admittedly, Scott sent this tweet (which completely bummed be out, because I thought mom had already learned about hashtage).  It did come with editorial approval from mom, so at least we know she saw it.  I talked to her tonight, and laughed at her ability to quickly brush off the question as to how she’s doing, and immediately begin asking me how me and my wife are.  Mom made it through today and is feeling much, much better than two weeks ago, making it almost difficult to remember that she spent 6 hours in a chair getting chemo today.  Her ability to get back up is something we could all take a lesson in.

Dad asked for information on where he could buy the shirts that the Hinds’ in MA, NC and AL are rocking every other Monday.  The stock was low at the Finish Line, but they are available here, where you can get a Livestrong Fight Like Hell shirt.  If you do happen to get one, please take a picture and send it in to TeamNanHinds@gmail.com so we can post the pictures here for mom to see.

Please know that we’re getting zero revenue from this link.  We happened to find the shirts at Finish Line in Natick, MA, and from the sounds of things, they aren’t widely available.  If you want to join in, online seems to be the only place we can find them.