The Success and Serious

Yesterday, I ran the Philadelphia Half Marathon, my first half marathon and the first time I ran further than 11mi. While I wasn't emotional about it at the end (at that point, I was tired, felt like puking, and was just happy to cross the finish line without feeling like I was going to pass out), I was emotional at the beginning. I felt great for the majority of the race, slowing down the last four miles, which is why I missed my "goal" time by six minutes, but, guess what, it doesn't matter. I finished. I even smiled about it moments later. And I am sure I'll run a half marathon again.

So yay.

But, as some of you may have heard, two people died yesterday. One man was only 21. The other was only 40. They died of cardiac arrest, close to the finish line.

On one hand, you hear about people collapsing during races and dying frequently. On the other hand, I have never been a runner in one of those races (though I am pretty sure they may have run the full marathon...so not an exact correlation, but you know what I mean)*. It changes things. Maybe it shouldn't, but it does.

When I first heard the news, they reported that it was a 21 year old woman who had collapsed. At mile 12, I passed a young woman. She was lying on the ground, her shoes were off, she was crying, she looked dazed, and two people were assisting her. It didn't look good. When I first heard the news, I worried that this girl was one of the ones that had died. I worried that I had run past someone who died. It shook me up. A lot. I don't know what happened to her. I can only assume that EMS picked her up and that she is fine.

Thanksgiving is Thursday. I can't help but think about giving thanks after these stories. Death, and pain, put it all in perspective. Running is a great activity. A healthy one, but every body is different. You can never take a run for granted. Good, bad, in-between, 1mi, 5k, 10k, half, full, ultra. Doesn't matter. I may not have hit my goal time, but I finished with no injuries (just a really sore right hip). I was able to walk the two miles home, see an old friend for dinner, and another friend for a late night movie. Today, I am sore and for a week or two I won't run, but in December I will put on my running shoes again. Like Mark Remy, I'll definitely be thinking about those two runners (and the woman I saw) when I go for my next run...which will be a fun run. No goal. Just the distance my body feels like running. I am grateful for that. Extremely grateful.

(P.S. I have only written 1,500 words since Friday. I am only 9,500 words from winning NaNoWriMo. I am hoping to make up for lost time today, tomorrow and Wednesday.)

***UPDATE: The 21 year old, Jeffrey Lee, was running the half marathon. Here is an article about his memorial service.