Today is brought to you by the letter G for Gratitude.

The first people I told about my decision to walk 20 miles 3 days in a row were my hiking friends.

Image Credit: DeeDee

We call ourselves "Girls Just Wanna Hike. And Eat. And Drink. And Peter." Which is really a poor description. Because Tony also walks with us. And from time to time another brave husband. And we also go to plays. And play bunco. And a bunch of the group are loyal to Orange Theory. Or get together for a sewing mission. Or line dancing. Or to watch Yvonne perform. Or see Sherry's pictures win awards. Or for Peter's orchids to win awards. Or for Molly to lead Aquafit in Monica's pool.

Pretty much, if some random idea floats through anyone's head - someone in this group will be game.

It turns out, deciding to walk 20 miles a day for a few days is too random for even this group of insane people. I didn't get any takers on the full experience - but Debbie immediately committed to joining me for one day of the walk!

Unsurprisingly, many of these people leapt to support the fundraising component of this endeavor.

With the knowledge that I had a slew of training partners ready to join me on extended hikes and keep me moving towards the 600 training miles target the event organizers recommend, I shared my fundraising page on Facebook.

I'm honestly not sure I would have even attempted this fundraising effort in the absence of social media. I have never been comfortable asking for money. The only childhood fundraiser my kids participated in was Girl Scout Cookies - and that was because people came to us and asked to buy them. Even in support of a cause I feel passionately about and having a vested interest the programs for which I am raising funds - I wouldn't want to put people on the spot by directly asking them for a donation.

People who care about a fundraiser request on Facebook can click a link. Those who have other causes that are more near and dear to them can scroll on by.

With that said, the generosity of my friends, family, and acquaintances is humbling.

Within 24 hours I had met 20% of my minimum fundraising threshold and I had reached a third of my minimum goal within 48 hours.

And each contribution is a joy, not only because it gets me closer to my goal, but because I get to reminisce about the donor.

When I received Corinne's contribution, my first, I thought of her enormous heart and her habit of adopting everyone's children as nieces and nephews and the incredible hugs she shares.

I was surprised by a donation from Crystal and Will and it allowed me to reminisce about the hours spent playing Minecraft with their youngest while Thomas coached their oldest - and the great love I felt when Will dyed his beard pink upon hearing of my diagnosis.

Sherry's donation reminded me I have a friend who can be counted on to not only join me on an extended training hike but to show me new trails in the nearby state park and educate me about the flora and fauna we come across in the process.

Derek's contribution took me back to two shared Michigan Rose Bowl wins and one night camping out in the rain in Pasadena to secure game tickets. And I made a mental note to reach out and find out how his daughter fared in her first semester at Michigan Law.

A contribution from Audrey reminded me of the support she showed me when I finally felt brave enough to start hiking with a group but not brave enough to remove my hat and show these new friends the British Invasion chic hairstyle I was sporting. She has a gift for making people feel welcome.

Chris made both a donation and shared my page, and I thought about how cancer has brought new people and new experiences into my life - and in that way enriched me.

Monica sat right across from me after she finished her tacos tonight and sent in a donation while helping me test the QR code function. She helped me brainstorm fundraising ideas and supported the idea to print the QR code right on the back of a shirt I wear while doing 10+ mile preparation hikes.

And a donation from Anthony took me back to Christmases following him down anything he deemed a run at Talisman, even if that "run" involved skiing through running water and over rocks that efficiently scraped every sign of pytex of the bottom of my new skis. It is thanks to him that I consider ski runs a mere suggestion.

Thus, within 48 hours, my decision to participate in the 3-Day has already given me the gift of fond memories of people whether I saw them a few hours ago or not for years. It has given me gratitude, not just for their generosity to an endeavor that is important to me, but for the myriad of ways that each of them has contributed to my life.

If these are the lessons this project is going to provide for me, I can't wait for the next one.