This morning I walked the Girls on the Run 5k which is the first event in the Making a Move series. When I told my surgeon I wanted to walk a 5k on May 4 he told me to give it a try, but he wasn’t sure I’d be able to complete it. My physical therapist told me it would be challenging, but I’d probably make it. Which of them was correct?
The physical therapist!
This morning was cold and rainy, sorta like last Saturday. Here’s a photo I took from my car.
My fabulous friend, training partner and sometimes coach, Lynn walked with me. In the rain. That’s friendship.
We stayed in the very back of the pack…as in there were no participants behind us. I haven’t healed enough to walk quickly, so we decided to take our time and be happy I can now cover three miles. While on the course we caught up on each others’ lives and solved all of the world’s problems. We also made it our mission to encourage the young girls who were making their way back on the out and back course. Several very young girls were crying. They’d just made the turnaround at the halfway point and I think it dawned on them that they’d gone a LONG way and they still had far to go…at least from their young perspectives.
Along the route we saw Linda, a friend who has overcome tremendous health challenges and keeps on running. In fact, she’s written a guest post about her journey. I also saw my friend Michele, a Girls on the Run “running buddy” who kept her young participant motivated.
Lynn and I were struck by a conversation we kept hearing. Two “tween-aged” girls were doing the race together. One was clearly struggling, the other talked her through it saying things like, “We’re almost there; it’s time to dig deep.” She was absolutely fantastic. We later learned her name is Grace. I have a hunch she’ll grow up to be a fantastic young woman.
When all was said and done, we completed the event in 1:03:59. I’d hoped to finish in 65 minutes so we beat that goal by a smidge. There was a time I’d have been horrified for such a 5K time, but it’s all a matter of perspective; I’ve only been out of my walking boot for three weeks.
Completing a 5k feels pretty darn fantastic.
482gr8 