5:40 AM
12 miles ahead of me.
I let the dog out and the sticky air hangs out on the street waiting for me.
I don't know why I run.
I get butterflies . . even now . . .when I run longer distances like 12 miles.
12 miles is going to hurt. It comes down to a matter of when in the run it is going to start hurting. If it starts hurting at 2 miles I am in trouble! If it holds off until mile 8 or 9 it will be normal.
My life is so much more fulfilling because I run . . .
This is my church before church.
___________________________________
12:55pm
I made it. When I got home and took my shoes and socks off my toe nail was hanging by a thread. I'll put up a picture soon . . .of the 35,000 daily followers (give or take a few thousand) I know that there are some hardcore runners out there that thrive on a good gore shot like a hanging toenail.
Some highlights of the 12 miler:
Mile 8 I smelled maple syrup.
Mile 9 my left hamstring shocked me as I ran up the "Lake Storey" hill. I don't think it is normal when a muscle goes into "shock" mode!
At mile 11 I lifted the top of my shirt to circulate air and was struck with the realization that a couple of my 150 chest hairs was silver.
I was struck today about how running is the easiest/hardest thing to do. As far as skill . . .we learn it in its simplest form at about 1 1/2 years of age. However, the mental side of repeatedly beating your body step after step for an extended period of time is learned. That part of running is not natural.
I am training myself to once again run 26.2 miles . . . that is MY goal.
In church today I learned (or was once again reminded) that GOD's goal is not MY happiness but to transform me into the likeness of Christ . . . .at all costs.
I praised God almost every step this morning. I DO NOT take my health and this journey that running has given me for granted. I KNOW that both can be taken from me (if it God's will) at any given time . . .but in the meantime . . . .each step, no matter how much it hurts, is a gift - -and I am thankful.
I drank 18 ounces of water (with a Nuun tablet to replace the sodium loss) and 2 gels (mile 4 and mile 9).
This is it . . .
