I haven’t posted here since Blue Sunday as my energy couldn’t quite stretch to it. But if you’re following me on social media you’ll already know that Blue Sunday 2022 went rather well!
I’m at a loss as to what to say that will accurately portray how happy and thankful I am. But I’ll ramble away anyway.
Blue Sunday 2022 has surpassed last year’s incredible £21,000 total. I’m still checking the numbers and will let you know later what this year’s total is.
It is surreal to think that Blue Sunday 2022 has raised £20,000 more than Blue Sunday 2020. And it took a good while to wrap my head around raising £6000 that year…
It doesn’t seem like that much of a groundbreaking idea; for a fundraising event to be inclusive of the people we’re wanting to fundraise for.
Yet the response every year shows how rare that actually is and how much we want to be a part of things.
I am so incredibly proud to be a part of this community. I am aware that for every person who joined us on Blue Sunday, there are thousands who were too unwell to (and many who haven’t heard of it yet.)
Blue Sunday *is* a huge undertaking for me. (I imagine a non-chronically ill person could accomplish in a few weeks what takes me a whole year.) But I assure you it isn’t done at the expense of my health. In my years with M.E. I have learnt to respect my body far too much to ask more of it than it can give. Slowly but surely, five minutes here, half an hour there, everything that needs to get done, gets done. And would you look at the reward this year!
I have looked into ways to outsource bits here and there. For the first time I had a team behind me on the day itself to make sure none of your posts went unseen. They were Cat, Dee, Holly, Jo, Lorna, Megan, and Sarah.
Please remember that you don’t have to have held an all singing all dancing tea party. It has always been, and always will be, about what fits best around your own health. If that’s wearing blue socks in bed, then that counts! If that’s a glass of water while you look at everyone’s posts online, that counts! I needed to go back to bed mid-party. You’ve got to do what you’ve got to do.
On a personal level, this is the first in-person Blue Sunday I’ve had for a few years.
It felt very special to get to mark the day with the people who have hosted every Tea Party For M.E, on my behalf, since the very beginning.
In 2013 when Blue Sunday began, I never ever thought I’d host the event in a home of my own. That thought would have been farcical! This was my first time doing so and I will savour the memories.
With huge thanks to my husband, parents, family and close friends for baking, setting up, clearing away, washing up, and doing everything else inbetween because I can’t.
Once again, I’m seeing that Blue Sunday gives those around me a welcome opportunity to show the depths of their support. There is so little they can do and they cannot do the thing they want most; to end my suffering and the suffering of all people with ME/CFS. But they can do Blue Sunday.
Thank you for supporting Blue Sunday 2022 and the charities it was hoping to raise money for.
M.E. myself and I 