14 Miles

14 Miles... it's the distance from my house to my place of work-- Oswego to Naperville. Or the distance from Union Station in Chicago to the center of Park Ridge. It's a little longer than the island of Manhattan... and a heck of a long way to run.

But we ran it-- in the brutal summer heat, with knees popping and IT bands squishing, and cramps attacking our insides-- we did it as a team.

And I knew I would learn about the limits of my will power (which I suspect may be limitless...). And I knew I would find out about the strength of my body (which hates me just a little right now). But I did not expect a lesson in stoicism-- and I did not expect to hear it second hand.

As we pummelled forward on the pavement I pulled our team as best I could. With optimism and with leading by example, I trudged forward and asked them to do the same. They did wonderfully. When the run was over, Gabbi told me about a little conversation she had with Cameron, who had remarked how she couldn't believe I was still going. Gabbi told her, "believe me, she's in as much pain as we are, she's just pushing through it."

To which Cameron said, "that's what makes her a good leader." And that struck me as quite a compliment.

Drop Back: 6 Miles

We only ran 6 miles on Saturday because we needed to heal from the previous 12 miler. That was fine with me because I was pretty sick-- lots of sniffles. I could hardly breathe and the sun was beating down horrendously. Our entire group was pretty miserable in the heat. I cannot imagine next week's 14 mile run if it's going to be that hot.

Gabbi and I went to the community garden after that to plant more stuff. Our plot is really coming together now and we're starting to make friends. Next week there's a cook out that we're volunteering for. I don't know how much we'll feel like cooking in the heat after such a long run, but it's easy to be ambitious a week in advance!

12 Miles in the Rain

It was pouring down rain Saturday morning as we ran 12 miles. This was by far the most challenging run to date-- because we were soaked, we were cold, and we were all exhausted.

When my right leg went pretty much numb and I ran 5 of those miles with 'pins and needles' throughout that leg I began to think about inner strength. When the rain started to pelt me and I was running against the cold wind drenched in water and sweat, I began to ask for inner strength. When we finished the 12 miles I realized that I had gained some measure of precious inner strength. I was pretty stoked (and sore).

Double Digits

If you would have told me a year ago that I would run ten miles-- ever-- I probably would have said you're nuts. But Saturday I took those ten miles in my stride (literally) and led our group, as a unit, to the double digit finish line.

"Cheeks" says she's going to buy me a bottle of Patron for after the race for being a good leader and keeping us on track. I was flattered to hear that I am filling the role well-- being new at this I am more than a little nervous about that.

But the run went smoothly-- albeit the end was very strenuous. I cannot imagine the twelve miles we're supposed to run next week, but I suppose it will be like this week. You just keep going.

Speaking of keeping going, after the run I went to the community garden again and planted some vegetables with the church. It makes me feel good to know that someone will soon receive the blessing of fresh nutrients.

After that I went to see a play, then dinner, and then I danced away the remainder of the night. I went to bed around 4 in the morning-- and I still couldn't sleep past 7 a.m.!