Sunday, March 30, 2008

21 days to go...and at last (!) we begin the sweet, sweet taper.

Today I ran 22.6 miles, easily the hardest thing I've done to date, at least in a physical sense. My legs were dull, heavy, and shaking with fatigue by the time I finished, and the moments of doubt in the last mile were strong and sinuous, attempting to wind their way into my consciousness. But I traveled the distance, as did so many other runners today--not just Dana Farber's, but the hundreds of others we saw along the route.

Tonight I received a letter, one that reminded me that every mile is a victory, every step a journey. An excerpt for my fellow runners:

"Remember--You are strong and were created this way with purpose. No amount of miles can take that away from you.

We are all proud of you. You are never running alone."

I'm a writer by nature, but some things...some things get you so deep, that there aren't any words that are enough to say how you feel--full, happy, joyful, encouraged, loved--not enough. NEVER enough.

Runners, take heart--none of us are running alone.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

A little birdie told me that there was one of those Office Space moments on the run...but that you powered through it:

"Joanna: So, where do you work, Peter?
Peter Gibbons: Initech... I uh, I don't like my job, and, uh, I don't think I'm gonna go [RUN] anymore.
Joanna: You're just not gonna go [RUN]?
Peter Gibbons: Yeah.
Joanna: Won't you get fired?
Peter Gibbons: I don't know, but I really don't like it, and, uh, I'm not gonna go [RUN].
Joanna: So you're gonna quit?
Peter Gibbons: Nuh-uh. Not really. Uh... I'm just gonna stop going [RUNNING]."