Up front: I don't think that I was trying to make one precise point. It's a deeply emotional poem, not a think piece, and I deliberately left things open for interpretation.
What I would like to say to this specific point now, however:
The marathon already is the "hard thing" without a twisted ankle. Even if you run a marathon uninjured, you are going to have sore muscles; you can get cramps, side stitches, wounds from chafing, lose a toenail, etc. It will always be hard, and some people will have it harder than others, e.g., based on genetics, how well their training went, what pace they aim for, how much sleep they got, and how well they ate. Regardless, it can absolutely be worth it to push through (and suffer until the finish line). That's why it can be so easy to ignore the ankle at first.
The ankle will, however, get worse. And it will come to a point where you won't be able to push through simply with the power of will. Even with all the grit in the world, and no matter how much you are willing to suffer, the injury ultimately will at least slow you down (if not worse).
You always can keep going unless you can't. I do not deny that there is some triumph in the pain after all; it feels like you are defying the odds (and if there is something we love to glorify, it is exactly that). But there is a reason people start breaking down at 36 km in. It's not because they are weak or not willing to suffer (if that was the case, they would not be at 36 km). It's because there is a point where the power of will is not enough anymore. Maybe that point never comes for you. In fact, I wish it won't. This is just a small warning. The fact that you made it this far on an injury does not mean you can and should keep going, and it does not make you exceptional. It just makes you lucky for now. Please get that ankle checked; please take care.
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