This season of my life has been a strange one. Moving on to new things, yet not knowing what I am moving on to do. I am done having children, I am not a newlywed, I am done with small children. My youngest started Kindergarten and now I am now in charge of my own time for the first time in 15 years. What do you do with yourself? I could clean house, volunteer, work on projects or a million other things, but none of those things were quite right (though I did them all) Looking back I have discovered that I needed something that was mine. Something that said that I had accomplished something that wouldn't disappear and have to be done again the next day. Something that I was in charge of that was about my own determination and goal setting and achieving.
Am I a good mom? Probably. Am I a good wife? I try to be. Am I a good homemaker? Not so much, but I am not the worst. I play the organ at church which I am getting better at, but there will always be someone better. What is it that defines me or makes me good at something?
In December I got this crazy idea that I needed to start running. I don't know where it came from. I don't run; I don't like to run; I don't want to run, but I started. I decided that I needed to run in a race. I looked up how to train and got on the treadmill and starting running. During the training I figured out that I really don't like to run very much, but if I was determined enough I could do it. I just had to keep going and going and going.
I ran my very first race (5K or 3.1 miles) on April 22nd in Crystal City, VA. I ran it with both my sisters. I prepared and planned and then got sick. I ran it anyway (in the rain). Bib number 2031: Results 38:28minutes. I ran the whole thing and didn't stop. As I crossed the finish line the tears came. I really did it. I even did it 4 minutes faster than my fastest training time. I couldn't breathe and my feet had gone numb (from shoes that were not loose enough),
but I finished what I started. I did something I never in a million years thought that I could do. I then ran another race in May. I am taking a break from running for the summer because I hate to be hot and I am a little bit burnt out.
but I finished what I started. I did something I never in a million years thought that I could do. I then ran another race in May. I am taking a break from running for the summer because I hate to be hot and I am a little bit burnt out. So what is the next step? I think I am going to start training for a triathlon.
