I do run, run, run

The cool part: I got up a little earlier than usual, even, this morning and ran a 5-k race!
The sad part: I am most proud of that 'running' the race bit. Because I don't run. I don't enjoy it. It hurts. It's hard. I have friends who love it, and I admire them for it and envy them a bit, but it is not for me.
Today, though, was a little different. I'm not sure why.
This is the second year I've done the So Others Might Eat Thanksgiving Turkey Trot. My cubicle neighbor and friend here at work asked me if I wanted to do it last year. We walked it with her roommate. We actually walked so slowly that I got sore from the lack of movement, if that makes any sense at all. My muscles weren't even being engaged.
This year, we decided to push ourselves a little and actually RUN some of it. Bits here and there. I know! We are so daring. Really going out on a limb there.
But she caught a bad cold -- probably the one I had all of last week -- and couldn't make it. So I was on my own. I wish she'd been there, but I had a different experience this way. I didn't know what to do with myself, once I'd registered, so I walked around eavesdropping on people and just generally looking around. Trying not to get sucked down into the mud bog that this particular part of the Mall grass was quickly becoming.
I saw Adrian Fenty, D.C.'s newly minted mayor. My gosh -- I think the guy's younger than I am. He seems a decent fellow. Good luck, Mr. Fenty! You have a challenge ahead of you, and I ain't talkin' about this 5k race.
I saw lots of dogs, and some kids in strollers. I wonder if Lizzy would like to go with me next year? The 6:30 a.m. wakeup time and 45-degree weather would not win her over.
We were ushered to the starting line -- 2,000 of us participants -- and I heard a guy behind me say, "Well, it's 8:28 -- looks like this thing isn't going to start on time." Then the starting horn sounded. Off we went! As soon as the pack moved, that is.
One thing I like about this little jaunt is that it's a down-and-back track, so you get to see the frontrunners hauling back toward you at some point. It shows me what people who actually run move like. (They move fast.) I haven't run (or walked) any other race, so I have no point of reference, but I get the impression that this is about as low-key as it gets. My out-of-shape self felt right at home.
I told myself I'd start running, and stop when I wanted to. I suppose a lot of running is physical, but for me it's almost purely mental. I think to myself, "I could stop now! I could stop soon! When can I stop?" I do this right away, as soon as I start. I told myself to let go of this mentality as much as possible -- to go at my own pace, to not let anyone's pace intimidate me, and just keep moving. It was okay if it was slow. And I enjoyed it! Not like doing the treadmill at home, that's for sure. I couldn't tell how far I'd gone, which was also helpful.

In seventh grade, we had to run a mile-plus in P.E. class, once a week. At the time, I thought this was the most horrifying request possible. By this time, I was already a three-sport athlete, if you can call a 7th-grader that with a straight face. But running! Puh-leeze! Not for me. I remember my dad telling me that I should be able to run the whole thing, no problem. Sure, if I was a superhero! I think I ran a lap, then walked. I got a C-minus for that part of the class. I just had no use for it. I'm not sure why I didn't let it challenge me more. Now, I realize that a mile is nothing. Heck, three miles is nothing, too. I mean, I'm not choosing to go out and run it, but if I had to, for class or whatever... I have no idea why I let mental barriers like that hold me back sometimes.

Anyway, as I ran, I was revisited by many conversations with my dad, or coaches, or friends who run. Things they've told me over the years. I think I spend so little time alone that my mind goes on overdrive when it gets the chance. Things like, "It's all about breathing. Pace your breathing with your stride." And Hebrews 12, about pressing forward, running the race, etc.
I began to think about all those metaphors that a race brings to mind. How we all start from the same place, but -- not really. There is a front row of runners, and they're probably better at running, anyway, and they will have greatly improved odds. I cheered a bit inside, actually, when someone who clearly was way back in the pack went huffing by me occasionally. (or did they start late? I have no idea why they'd have that much steam, but have been behind me.) Someone was beating the odds!
And, after all that, it's just fun to be in downtown D.C., near all the monuments and such. It happens so rarely these days.
And then I came across what must have been the only open Starbucks near Metro Center, at just the time it opened, on my way to work afterward. That, plus the serious endorphin rush I was experiencing, made for a great start to a Thanksgiving, work or no work.

Happy Turkey Day, y'all. I'm really thankful for you, my friends and family. I'm feeling that this year more than ever, and I don't take the chance to say it enough.