Today, the entire school participated in "les virades de l'espoir" to raise money and awareness for cystic fibrosis (la mucoviscidose). Les petits ran in the early morning, and the teachers and les grands ran before lunch. The goal was to see who could go around the track the most times. Most of the teachers brought des baskets and un jogging, changed after class and joined in the fun. Virginie and I agreed to meet and do our virade together. We walked at a brisk pace, jogged a bit, and speed-walked for a total of nine laps in about 30 minutes. The kids, excited to see their teacher participating, cheered me on by doing the wave and yelling "Vive l'anglais!" and "Allez, Miss Robinson!" Each time I got close to les petits on the side of the track, I picked up the pace and tagged their outstretched hands as I went by.
I know sponsors are involved somehow, but haven't yet figured out where the money is coming from, because no one asked me to donate anything. In my online research, I discovered that the race was inspired by the American tradition of running to raise money for different causes. Families of children with cystic fibrosis organized the first virade in 1985 in Romagnat, at town not far from Clermont-Ferrand (where I lived during my first séjour in France). Today, most virades will take place on September 30th, in over 450 different locations. In the past 22 years, over 62 million euros have been raised to fight cystic fibrosis in France. www.virades.org
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