In October 2003, at age 33, Wakefield was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), the incurable, progressive neuromuscular degeneration also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. But the author prefers to call it the Darcy Wakefield Anti-Disease, or DWAD. That's because she sees herself primarily as a Maine community college English professor, not a patient, and this renaming of her condition is one of many attempts to own the disease before it owns her. This chronicle of her life from February 2003 through December 2004 is a spirited look at what a difficult terminal illness can and cannot take away from a person. When it comes to the ability to run, to walk, to write, to hold a child and to speak, ALS prevails. Yet Wakefield wins in regard to loving and being loved, having a child and making a home. Her prose is informal and conspiratorial, inviting readers to share her triumphs, her fears and her frustrations. As time and the disease progress, Wakefield, living what she calls "a fast-forward life," seems wiser, braver and more alive than ever. This meditative diary of living with disease just may make readers feel all that, and grateful, too.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Owner Reviews, Ratings, Comments and Criticism
To say I "enjoyed" reading this book seems perverse. I wish there were no cause for "I Remember Running." Rather, it seems appropriate to say I am deeply appreciative to Darcy Wakefield for writing this book. Her prose is one of the many gifts within "I Remember Running." The writing is lyrical, lovely and at times, damned funny.
It would be a mistake to overlook this memoir thinking you cannot relate to the story of someone living with a terminal illness. This book will have meaning for anyone who has reflected on universal questions of human existence. It will resonate with anyone who has ever had a reason -- tragedy, loss, illness -- to give up hope or ask, "Why me?" Wakefield knows better than to try to answer that question. Instead, without a trace of self-pity, she insightfully calls our attention to the every-day, thousand-fold blessings of being alive. She writes fearlessly and poignantly about myriad issues her disease forces her to confront: faith in a higher power, equality in her relationships and her own sense of self-worth.
And there is more. She gives voice to a generation of 30-something women who have struggled with questions of body image, marriage and motherhood, even as they succeed educationally and professionally. Wakefield marches into all of these messy, private places with grace, humor and honesty. You will find yourself laughing out loud. You will probably weep too. You will want to go running. I did. I highly recommend this beautiful book.
