So yesterday was the Bentonville Half Marathon. I've spent the last 3 months training for it, thinking about it, changing my schedule and eating habits for it and dreaming about how it would feel to cross the finish line.
When I hurt my knee (tore my IT band) the week before the race I was devastated. I still tried to push through. Wrapped it, stretched it, iced it and even got a steroid shot. Two days before the race I accepted that I would not be able to run. The hard core wastefulness of the situation was overwhelming. So I called a friend and asked him to take my place. He hadn't trained, wasn't planning on running it and didn't think he was ready. But he said yes as a favor to me.
My biggest concern about me not running the race was that my sister would have to do it alone. When I asked Steve to run for me I knew there was a good chance he would want to push it and get his best time leaving my sis in the dust. I also knew that my sister could choose to give it her all, since she trained so hard, and leave Steve behind.
Through the entire course of the race Steve and my sister stayed together. Challenging each other to push harder, encouraging each other to keep going, staying with each other during times of recovery. They crossed the finish line together - beating our desired goal time!

My friend Lindsay and her husband Travis ran yesterday too. Travis decided to push their 2 year old little girl in a stroller while running the race. After a mile and a half of the baby crying and needing to go potty, Lindsey (knowing that Travis would be fine) ran on ahead. Travis had to stop twice and take the baby to the bathroom and hold her. At mile 7 he handed to stroller off to his parents who were there cheering him on. He bolted it and not only caught up with Lindsey - he passed her! While passing her he turned and asked her if she was ok. She told him she was not ok and needed him to stay with her. They stayed together the rest of the race and crossed the finish line together (at an impressively good time). After the race Lindsey told me that Travis could have finished way sooner but he held back for her. I just thought "wow! he made the right memory!"

Would it have been perfectly acceptable for Travis to give it his all to catch up Lindsey and keep going? Yes! Would it have been fine if Steve challenged himself and took off without looking back at my sister? Heck yeah. And would it have been ok for my sister to push it out without thinking about Steve? Yes! Expected even! Would they all have wonderful memories of the day? Yes!!
But they all chose to make the right memory. The one that takes you further than the pride of finishing a race. The one that'll make the biggest return on such a beautiful love deposit.

I am inspired by them.

Posted by: mukeyjoy

March 14, 2010 at 12:44 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )