Race Day

Those of you who know me well know that I'm a runner at heart.  That doesn't mean I'm very fast or even that I run very often right now, but it's still my favorite way to exercise.  And I still get so nostalgic for my high school cross country days whenever I run in or visit a  race.

A couple of years ago our school introduced an amazing and empowering new program called,  Girls on the Run .  When Cami first joined that  inaugural group I thought it was just about running and I was thrilled even for that, but it turns out it was so much more.  Along with the season of training to run a 5k together, they also learn about healthy eating habits, developing a healthy body image, and effective ways to deal with stress.  It truly is an inspired program which I've been proud to have my girls participate in.

 Since the girls must be in 3rd grade before they can join, this was Emma's first year to participate.  We were somewhat disappointed when, after the season began, we realized that the final race was held on Sunday this year.  We debated about what to do, since we definitely did not want her to miss out on the feeling of accomplishment from running the 5k, but also did not want to run on the Sabbath.  Serendipitously our high school was sponsoring a 5k run this past Saturday.  We were a little hesitant that it would work for Emma since it's an entire month earlier than her official GOTR race would have been and she hadn't worked up to that distance yet in her practices.  However, in the end,  we decided that being surrounded by the familiar faces of people from her elementary school (some kids, mostly teachers), would make it the next best thing to running with her team. With Adam an eager miler in the fun run, thus began our family day at the races.

Since Glen consistently runs 6-7 miles at a time, he got the job of accompanying Emma.  My heart melted when we went to cheer them on in the middle of the race and found them sticking together like glue with Glen giving Emma little pep talks to keep her spirits up.  *sniff* 

I thought I was taking the easy job when I agreed to run with Adam.  It's only a mile after all and he's only in first grade.  I really didn't think it could be that bad, but I was....WRONG!!  Adam's legs may be a lot shorter than mine, but that kid of mine is a fast runner.  I was feeling pretty stupid at how much I was struggling to keep up with him, but when we crossed the finish line with a mile time of 7:30  I didn't feel quite so badly anymore.  I'm pretty sure I haven't run that fast in about 20 years or so. 

Afterward they were both beaming with pride and my eyes were watery.    Watching them work hard and run through the pain is a sight that never fails to inspire me. 

Way to go Emma and Adam!

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