Friends

I always thought of running as a solitary sport, not something that you did with others.  Boy was I wrong.

When I first started running, I did a learn to run program and made my first running friend.  Sheila could have run faster then me, but stuck with me every week. We then ran our first 5k together.

When I decided to train for my first 10k, my friend Donzella offered to train with me and ran the 10k race in a torrential downpour, getting me over the finish line long after I was ready to give up.

Since then I have made so many more running friends.  

Friends who run in the rain with me; friends who wake up before the sun so that we can drive to races together; friends who join me at the track on a Sunday morning while I run 50+ laps.  Friends who finish their race and double back to help me cross the finish line.  Friends who are always at the finish line to cheer me on. 

Friends who give me a gift to remind me every day that I should believe in myself.

Friends who believe in me.

Running and Religion Don't mix

I’ve spent a fair bit of time thinking about my final decision for running or not running the Salvation Army’s Santa Shuffle. During all of this thinking, I came to the realization that for me, running and religion don’t mix. (Many runners will proclaim that running IS their religion, but that is a whole other topic.)

I don’t mix religion into any other aspects of my life, so I’m not going to start now. I think running can be a great fundraiser for a lot of causes, and the 3 organized races I have done so far have all been fundraisers but none of them were for religious causes.

So I’m choosing to NOT run the Santa Shuffle, not because it is put on by the Salvation Army, but because it is put on by a religious group.

You could say that I don’t Jog for Jesus, Race for Religion, Canter for Christ, Amble for Allah, Sprint for Shiva, Vamoose for Vishnu or Dash for Divinity. I will however Scramble for Schools, Compete for Cancer and Hurry for Hunger.

Mostly though, I run for me.

photo credit: skreened.com

Run for the Cure

Now that I'm running on a regular basis, I figured I should use my power for good! I'm hoping to raise at least $150 for the Run for the Cure 5K run on October 6th.

Breast Cancer will affect one out of every nine women in their lifetime. One out of 29 will not make it. Although the stats have improved tremendously over the past 20 years due to early detection, we'd like to see that number disappear. The funds raised from Run for the Cure will go a long way in helping with research, education and health promotion.

I have been very fortunate that my immediate circle of friends and family have not been affected by breast cancer. Two of Liam's teachers have, parents and relatives of our friends have and so have co-workers. So it touches us all in some way. So while I'm not running for any one specific person, I am running for all women.


Please click on the "Donate Now"  button below to sponsor me.