Yesterday I ran my 13th marathon. It was an absolutely beautiful day in St. George and it had the makings for an amazing race. But sometimes for whatever reason, the race, much like life, doesn’t go our way. We can try and force things, we can fight and struggle and dig deep. . . Or we can, “Surrender to what is. Let go of what was. Have faith in what will be.” When I could feel that forcing my pace was hurting my body, beyond the normal “this hurts but I can handle it” that I am very accustomed to as a distance runner, I made the decision to back off. I LOVE running. I LOVE being active. I HATE being injured. No projected finish time is worth an injury that prevents me from living my life. At mile 16 I made the decision, let me clarify, my body made the decision that today I just needed to run. I let go of all expectations. I quieted the mental and physical battle. I took out my headphones. I took a deep breath. And I ran. I noticed the brilliant blue sky, the contrast of the red rock cliffs and the green shrubs, the light breeze that was keeping me cool, the sound of hundreds of footsteps. . . And I smiled. Despite the incredible amount of pain every muscle in my body was feeling, I was enjoying my marathon. I love this race for so many reasons. Today my favorite reason was the people. The volunteers, the crowds cheering, the other runners and my running friends. Lots of blood, sweat and tears were left on that course yesterday. And despite what we are feeling right now, we'll all be back next year! #stgmarathon #magicinthemisery
