I have to say that lately it feels I've been running a marathon.
Life events have been taking me for a roller coaster ride-
one I've been yelling to get off of...but for some reason the person manning this ride can't seem to find the stop switch.
Life is like that for us
all at times...no?
Relationships.
Illness/Cancer.
Kids growing up/Leaving.
People in our lives moving away.
Injury.
Job loss.
Finances.
I remember last year running my first 13.1 miles...looking back at all the "Full Marathoners" having to keep going and running that exact 13.1 miles ALL OVER AGAIN.
My only thought-
"How insane can those people be? They have to run what I just did, Again!"
But this year- THIS was the year I wanted to be the insane one.
So register for the 26.2miles I did.
And trained diligently for several weeks- before some strange foot injury struck.
Huge disappointment.
It also meant I couldn't start my small "job" as a running instructor.
Another disappointment.
Week after week went by and I gave up the hope of running my marathon.
Life events continued and took their toll.
I considered myself off the Marathon List for this year.
Yet it lurked in the back of my mind.
And my thoughts~ (and I have plenty!)~ played out something like this:
What IF I could conquer it even without the "proper training"?
Even with all the things going on in my life right at present...
why couldn't I see if it was one thing I could conquer in this crazy life right now?
Really...
Each of us could consider our lives exactly like a marathon.
A continuation of mile after mile of adventure- or misadventure... for us to travel.
And NOT ONE OF US has trained ahead of time to live out our lives- have we?
No one can be prepared for what lies around the next turn, the next mile.
We just Do It.
Because we have to.
It's called Life.
And so.... the night before the race, I decided that I would run my first 42.2km run the next morning.
I would tackle it head on...and cross the finish line whether I ran through...or crawled.
And I did.
I finished my first Marathon.
Not in a record time by any means.
In fact- it was 40 minutes longer than the goal I originally began training for.
But the fact that I did it in a time where everything around me said it probably wasn't possible,
made me hopeful for what we all can be capable of.
Even in circumstances that aren't so great and beyond our control.
I think all of us have it in us to run a Marathon.
A "Running Marathon"...
or the "Marathon we call Life."
We do it because we have to.
Or need to.
But the point is...
we all have it in us to DO it.
We just have to Want to.
Now go run your Marathon...
wherever & whatever,
and however that may be!
~~~~
(Race Report to follow on my "Journey to Tri" blog...once my roller coaster slows down a little.)
Life events have been taking me for a roller coaster ride-
one I've been yelling to get off of...but for some reason the person manning this ride can't seem to find the stop switch.
Life is like that for us
all at times...no?
Relationships.
Illness/Cancer.
Kids growing up/Leaving.
People in our lives moving away.
Injury.
Job loss.
Finances.
I remember last year running my first 13.1 miles...looking back at all the "Full Marathoners" having to keep going and running that exact 13.1 miles ALL OVER AGAIN.
My only thought-
"How insane can those people be? They have to run what I just did, Again!"
But this year- THIS was the year I wanted to be the insane one.
So register for the 26.2miles I did.
And trained diligently for several weeks- before some strange foot injury struck.
Huge disappointment.
It also meant I couldn't start my small "job" as a running instructor.
Another disappointment.
Week after week went by and I gave up the hope of running my marathon.
Life events continued and took their toll.
I considered myself off the Marathon List for this year.
Yet it lurked in the back of my mind.
And my thoughts~ (and I have plenty!)~ played out something like this:
What IF I could conquer it even without the "proper training"?
Even with all the things going on in my life right at present...
why couldn't I see if it was one thing I could conquer in this crazy life right now?
Really...
Each of us could consider our lives exactly like a marathon.
A continuation of mile after mile of adventure- or misadventure... for us to travel.
And NOT ONE OF US has trained ahead of time to live out our lives- have we?
No one can be prepared for what lies around the next turn, the next mile.
We just Do It.
Because we have to.
It's called Life.
And so.... the night before the race, I decided that I would run my first 42.2km run the next morning.
I would tackle it head on...and cross the finish line whether I ran through...or crawled.
And I did.
I finished my first Marathon.
Not in a record time by any means.
In fact- it was 40 minutes longer than the goal I originally began training for.
But the fact that I did it in a time where everything around me said it probably wasn't possible,
made me hopeful for what we all can be capable of.
Even in circumstances that aren't so great and beyond our control.
I think all of us have it in us to run a Marathon.
A "Running Marathon"...
or the "Marathon we call Life."
We do it because we have to.
Or need to.
But the point is...
we all have it in us to DO it.
We just have to Want to.
Now go run your Marathon...
wherever & whatever,
and however that may be!
~~~~
(Race Report to follow on my "Journey to Tri" blog...once my roller coaster slows down a little.)
