Running with Greg

In most respects, my older brothers, Jeff and Greg, make me better at everything I do. They encourage and inspire me, both in my professional life as a storyteller and educator, and personally, through the friendships we share. The exception is running. All three of us run, but I run faster, farther and more often than they do.

A few years ago I ran the Canada Army Run half-marathon in Ottawa with Greg, a high-school communications technology teacher in the Toronto area. It was his first half-marathon. He finished well enough, but we agreed he could do better, and within a couple of months, we were both training for our next half-marathon. During one of his long runs, Greg had a strange sensation up and down one side of his body. He knew something wasn’t right, so he got an assessment, a diagnosis and a second opinion. Greg had developed multiple sclerosis.

All of us reacted with disbelief and fear. MS is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system for which there is, as yet, no cure. It can affect the brain, spinal cord, limbs, muscles, balance and co-ordination – essentially, your overall ability to function. Greg experienced typical early symptoms (numbness and discomfort). These have remained consistent on the right side of his body.