Friday, June 17, 2011

Daughter Follows in Mom's Running Shoes




Two years have gone by since my last post and it saddens me to think that my life has really been this busy. In the two years that have gone by I have remodeled a house, written a 125-page thesis, graduated from Sac State with my Master's, in addition to doing the normal stuff (working two jobs, caring for my children, and taking care of my house). Oh yeah, and running.



Running has not completely taken a backseat to everything else in my life despite the fact that I have not been training for any BIG races lately. I have still kept running but I have missed the more rigorous training schedule. I have had to put racing aspirations aside for awhile as I focused on other things. During these past two years I have reacquainted myself with Bikram Yoga and have practiced in conjunction to my running which has helped tremendously with my endurance and flexibility. I will take some time later to write about my amazing experience with Bikram.




So, while life has just sped by, other changes have taken place and good things are happening. I am learning to accept the things about myself that I cannot change and attempting to be more flexible where I normally would not be. The fact is: I AM ALWAYS BUSY. Plain and simple. I always have something going on. I don't go out searching for things to do. I just have a lot going on. I am never bored. EVER. I actually do not ever believe I have ever uttered the words: "I AM BORED." Nonetheless, I find that with such a busy lifestyle, I need more time. There is just simply not enough time in the day to do all the things I want or would like to do. With this type of a lifestyle certain things suffer, such as just laying around being lazy with your kids, taking a stroll without any timeline or goal in mind, shooting the breeze with a friend you bump into and not worrying about what is not getting done, taking the time to bake something with your kids that was not planned. I miss and want those things in my life but my TO DO LIST is often overpowering. I am therefore, a work in progress and I know that upon my deathbed, I will still have an unfinished TO DO LIST that I will be handing to my daughters as they roll their eyes at me.


That said, I have been thinking about this blog this whole year and have wanted to get back to it. Partially because I miss writing and secondly because of the therapeutic results it provides. So, I start once again today with a resolve to take some time out of my busy schedule to sit and write a bit and perhaps dialogue with others out there that perhaps struggle with similar things in their life. This blog originally started with the goal of writing about running but I have since come to accept that running, while immensely important in my life, is only a part of who I am and that I am so much more than just a crazy runner who often runs a crazy amount of miles. I am a mother, a girlfriend, a teacher, a daughter, a yogi, a friend, a learner, a landscaper, an organizer, a lover of memories, a baker, a cook, a writer and sometimes a dreamer. Yes, I am runner. My life often seems to be a metaphor for one long MARATHON. Nevertheless, as a runner, I realize that I need to be more flexible and allow for periods of rest.




Today's post therefore, comes with great excitement as I have news to share that thrills my heart. My daughter Stephanie, who will be a senior in High School this coming school year, recently approached me with concerns about what she should do for her mandatory Senior Project. It was with great surprise that she told me she was considering running a half marathon as her Senior Project. As with any Senior Project, she would need a mentor, would need to do research and would have to do field work. She thought the half marathon would be a good option since she had never run more than 6 miles as part of the cross country team at her school and that it would be a challenge to finish the research, the training (field work) and the actual race itself. I was elated as she has never shown interest in running more than a 5K and has often told me that the idea of a longer race just ever seemed attainable. Here is where I opened my BIG mouth: "Instead of running a half marathon, have you thought about running a full marathon? After all, this IS your senior project and you would like it to be a real challenge, something that not even your cross country buddies have done." She took me up on it. Just like that. I was amazed, shocked and excited all at once. We immediately started making plans for the research she would need to do as well as what the final project/paper would look like. I have a Master's degree in composition and I have run 5 marathons myself so I feel so honored to be able to mentor her as she writes this project and trains for this marathon. I am so proud of you Stephanie!




Look for details about our training and about the Marathon she and I will run together in December: The California International Marathon









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