There's Strength in Numbers

Running isn’t for the faint of heart, and definitely not for me. At least, that's what I told myself until 2021. Before that, the mere thought of running a block had me gasping for air. But let's rewind to my early days of dabbling in sports.

I’ve always been a health nut, my family can attest to my excessive enthusiasm for achieving a goal, but I was never (ever) athletic.

I remember my early days of giving sports a go. I’d begged my parents to let me try softball, even though I’d never hit a ball. My cousin, playing since elementary, told me to try out for her team.

So off I went, practicing every day in my backyard, hoping to win a spot.

On the day of tryouts, I stepped up to the plate. The coach, encouraging me to choke up on the bat, hunker down, and wait for the ball, had bigger expectations than I did.

Me? I never saw any of the strikes coming. One, whoosh, two…whoosh, three? Pretty sure you know how that ended.

What I didn’t expect was the resolve it gave me. The desire to see something through, to give it my best shot, and to know that I’d done all I could to finish the race.

Maybe that’s what led me to take up running. Maybe it made me fall in love with such a god-forsaken sport. Maybe it made me dig in every day, find my groove, and give it everything I had.

Looking back, though, it’s a funny thing. It was never about softball or even running. It was about being my best. Finding the strength within me to push through no matter what and to know that even on the darkest days, the ones running the race besides me make it all worthwhile.

And that’s why I’m here — continuing to run a race after (gasp) almost 25 years of self-employment. But this time, I’m doing it with the most amazing crew anyone could ask for. Or at least that’s what I tell myself. Until Sam edits this 15 times with major and minor feedback that may or may not be meant to help me run that race just a little better.