Making friends with Robby. I must say that Robby's letter was the most powerful for me. Not because of the words, necessarily, but because of Nancy’s friendship with him. I could easily visualize Robby following Nancy in the van with the headlights on, and can completely understand the sense of admiration and friendship he had for her. Who can ever imagine her becoming a lifelong friend with a guide from a biking trip who lives on the other side of the country and doesn’t understand what kosher means? Many people live a lifetime and do not see friendships like this. Nancy reinforces for me the importance of friendships and that they do take work but we live more enriched lives from them. You cannot qualify your friends based on the way you live your life . . . that would be terribly boring.

I love the story about the man who borrowed her chair in the park for his girlfriend and then used it as a footrest. It is okay to draw the line and not let people take advantage of you. We need to keep things right in this world. People need to respect, and those who do will be rewarded.

I’ll never look at a bicycle racer the same way again. I now know why you ride Nancy’s bicycle. There is something to this sport which brings out the best in people. I believe Nancy used this sport to provide her with a way to give more . . . to more people. How else can one person have so many friends? How else can one person have touched the lives of so many others? How else can one person have taught so many others what is truly important in life? I’ve been running for ten years now and have a small circle of friends I’ve made through this common interest. I now understand that it can be much more than this.

It’s such a cliché to say that we live life to the fullest. How many of us can really say that we wake up every day and do everything our hearts desire? I now know what living life to the fullest really means. I thank Nancy for sharing this with me.

I have cried through most of these letters but with every one there was also a smile. I concur with someone who wrote that they expected these letters to be very sad. I too was surprised that they were not sad at all. There are beautiful life lessons to be learned in reading these letters that will make all who read them better people . . . and the world a better place. I thank you for sharing them with me and hope that you share them with as many people who will be fortunate enough to learn what I’ve learned.

Love,
Alan Wexler