community

The running community never ceases to amaze me.  I was shopping the other day and a man stopped me and asked if I ran the race that was advertised on my shirt.  After a short conversation with him I shared my experience with several half marathons and no fulls.  He was hesitant to share that he had indeed run a marathon, in fact after I pulled it out of him I learned that he'd completed more than a dozen full marathons and he encouraged me greatly.

He talked about how amazing our bodies are and how races are more mental than physical... a fact all runners already know.  I shared my apprehension for tackling my first full next year and he was nothing more than encouraging about it.  He suggested some great first time races.  It was a pleasant conversation and I left feeling so encouraged.

-----

Today we ran the Mission 5k with our Run for God group.  My husband, daughter, and father all ran. I built this race up in my head so much that there's no way it could have lived up to my expectations. But then it did.

I had one of the worst 5k's I've had in a long time.  I made almost every mistake you can make before a race (i.e. needing to pee, going out too fast, tanking and having to walk the last half mile, not taking in enough water) but all along the way I saw faces I knew and received encouragement from so many people that none of that mattered in the end.

It was Julianna's first 5k and she placed in her age group.  They announced that she was the youngest finisher but we know there was also a little 5 year old boy who ran too so I'm not sure about all that... anyway, she ran all of the hills... she recited the books of the Bible going up some... she all-out sprinted the last tenth of a mile.

-----

I have never been a part of a community quite like the running community.  I may not win awards or break records, but I'm a part of a special family... one that cheers for each other and lifts each other up.  I am so thankful for the friends I have made through running and I am so proud of our group for being able to run this race for God.

Edited to add: Julianna placed FIRST in her age group, not third as we originally thought.  One proud mama right here!