Skip to main content

race you

I played sports in high school. JV tennis and varsity soccer. But no one I graduated with would call me an athlete.
I'm competitive. I like to play lots of sports but have never been great at any of them. Even after both kids I kept playing soccer...until I was taking my son to his own practices and I couldn't how to figure out how to juggle his games with mine.
I am a member of the best gym in town, but feel silly in those classes and I hate the treadmill.
I do however, love food.
I also have the cholesterol level of a 70 year overweight man who is on an all bacon diet.
And family history of diabetes and heart disease and am about 2 cheeseburgers away from shopping at Lane Bryant.
And the easiest solution to that is to lace up my sneaks, download some terrible music and take a few laps around the block.
And I'd come back home sweatier and with a clearer head.
At some point those few laps became a few miles and even occasionally a few hours.

Back in the fall a friend asked me to do a half marathon with her, to raise money for World Vision. For clean water for children in Africa. I'd only done a half marathon once before. Pre-kids and atleast 20 lbs ago. A few friends had tried to talk me into one a year or so back and I wasn't interested. Too far. Too expensive. Too much training.
But this time I said yes.

And I run for lots of reasons.
For the tshirts and race swag.
For the cupcakes I want to eat later.
For the good kind of sore the next day.
For my head to clear.
For atleast thirty minutes of quiet.
To help me get off the couch.
So my thighs don't rub together.
Because of how strong I feel after a really good run.
Because my pants fit better and I feel better when I do.
Because when else is it ok to put Beiber, Nikki Minaj , and the Zac Brown Band all on the same playlist.
Because I'll never be as fast as most people, but I know I can usually outlast them.
But this weekend I'll be running for all those selfish reasons....and one really more important one.


*nearly half of the world's population lives on less than 2$ a day (ouch. i spend more than that on coffee most days)
*Nearly every day 852 million people go hungry, over 300 million of those are children. (and not just hungry, like I feel most days after school because I eat lunch at 10:30...but real...hunger).
*One in every 5 children living in developing countries do not have access to clean drinking water (...I can just look around my living room and see almost that many half drank juice boxes or water bottles my kids left out)

and there are plenty more scary facts where that came from. (world vision stats on poverty) and I'm totally stealing this line from another one of their videos. "Some statistics you can't run from....but you can run for."
Want to help without getting blisters? Consider making a donation here: http://support.worldvision.org/site/TR?team_id=26640&fr_id=1471&pg=team
and thanks so much for the people who already have.

Comments

Good luck on your race!
I started running almost 3 years ago now. I love it. For all the same reasons as you listed. I love food, and the quiet, and pushing myself. I am nowhere near the fastest, or even the faster 50%, but I can go forever. And I enjoy running for a cause. It increases our world outlook beyond ourselves and our small families.
Alyssa said…
Good luck and can't wait to hear how it goes! Proud of you for running!

Popular posts from this blog

Canceled

I inhale books. So much so that I’m occasionally embarrassed by my intake. I don’t want anyone to think that I don’t work or pay attention to my family.  I’m just a fast reader and I don’t watch a lot of TV or play any games on my phone. Well – except for Wordle of course. My library card get a lot of miles. However, I still probably spend an embarrassing amount on books.  Even though I often put books in those cute little free libraries – I still have more books than shelves.  Today I did something tragic.  I did not renew my book of the month membership.  And let's be honest, it is more like three books a month.  I am not unhappy with the customer service, quality  or selection.  Book of the Month, I promise …it’s not you - it’s me.  I want to invest in my writing and I realize this going to cost me.  I don’t want to take that money from my family or my kid’s college funds.  Instead I had to evaluate what I was willing to give up.  What financial choices impact me but not as many

slow

Recently I went to the local running store and let them charge a ridiculous amount for a new pair of running shoes. I used to run. Just like I used to do lots of things, but lately I have been slow to get off the couch. Let’s be honest. This season has been a long one, and I’ve been slow to do a lot of things that are good for me. My old shoes are wearing thin and nothing motivates like a new pair of kicks.  I quickly found my brand and style of choice and asked the worker to bring them in my size. The owner spoke up from the back, “So you are picking your shoes out based on how they look?” I pulled my own foot into her view. I showed her a similar pair in teal, well worn, with the big toe scuffed all the way through. The model was a few years old and I needed a fresh start.  “Nope. These are my brand, but I’m open to your suggestions.” Runners are very particular about their shoes.  I tell her I need something to absorb a lot of the impact.  I tell her that I overpronate just a little

The annual REAL Christmas letter: 2021 edition

  One of my favorite traditions for over a  decade has been to sit down and try to write a REAL Christmas letter.  Not just the highlights, but a few honest moments as well. It started as a joke with one of my friends, thinking how refreshing it be for people to share more than just their perfect lives that we are used to seeing on Facebook and Instagram. It would be way more truthful and a whole lot more entertaining. So here goes… 2021 I had such high hopes for you. Well, actually the bar was pretty low but clearly not low enough. If I have learned anything from 2020 it is that even things that are difficult, the days are still a gift. It is a gift to gather with family without a Covid test or a worrisome 5 days after. It is a gift to go to the movies or a concert. It is a gift to go to work, school and sporting events. It is a gift to get vaccines, to board an airplane to sit in a pew at church. It is a gift to be allowed back to visit someone in the emergency room. It is a gift to