Oh that time I ran a 5k...

Sixteen years ago I ran my first 5k. I was with a high school friend and her family at their cabin. Everyone was running the 5k so I decided (on a whim) to join them. That was NOT a good decision. While I was involved in athletics in high school I was/am not a runner. I'm just not good at it. And I really don't enjoy it. One of my life mottos is "If you see me running, LOOK OUT because something (someone) is chasing me." So I finished that race...barely. And swore I'd never do a 5k again...

But....

Then Isaiah joined his school's running team this year and started doing races. And he asked me to do one with him....

So...

Saturday night I participated in my second 5k. Because how can you say NO to your eldest child when they tell you they want you to be healthy and live a long life?!? You can't! Or at least I can't. This picture was taken pre-race when I was freaked out and convinced I'd never be able to finish. I was also begging/bribing Isaiah to run with me instead of running his usual (much faster!) pace. Maybe this is where I should mention that despite registering six weeks in advance I never once prepared for this race...no running or jogging or even a brisk walk around the block. Nothing. Nada. Zilch. Oops. Clearly this child had reason to be concerned about my health...

But...

I finished! I did it. I ran/walked/hobbled the entire thing! I'm not going to lie. It was hard. And after I finished the second lap of the course (which I thought was the last lap!) and learned I had an entire lap more to go I wanted to sit down and cry. But I didn't. I just kept moving. (Something I learned the hard way during my first 5k. Stopping is never a good idea.) And eventually I made it to the finish line. Sure there were little kids and elderly adults passing me left and right. Sometimes my "run" was slower than the walkers surrounding me. But I finished. I kinda had to...Isaiah left me in his dust and I had to cross that finish line to find my child! Talk about motivation. 

After we were reunited at the finish line, Isaiah wisely had me stretch and then we waited for the posted results. I was so slow my time wasn't listed on the results. And by my calculations it was nearly double Isaiah's time. As I was expressing my disappointment in my results Isaiah interrupted me and proudly told me...

It was a success. You did it! You ran!

And in the end that's all that really matters. I made my eight year old proud of me. I might not be able to walk for the next week, but I did it!