Finishing the race...

I stood outside my dorm for the summer, wondering what the heck I was doing. It had been two weeks since my last run, a three-times-a-week event I did during the school year with my best friend who doubles as my girlfriend. But as the school year ended and I went on vacation, so did my exercise routine.

Fast forward to last night, when I decided to lace up the running shoes again and go for another run, of course with some encouragement from my best friend, who can no longer run by my side as she is in a different state.

It didn't take long into the run until my breathing became labored, my steps became heavier, and my stomach cramped like it usually doesn't do until the end of a run, and I honestly considered stopping several times. I actually quit in my head more times than I would like to admit, but kept going because I imagined those footsteps beside me, daring me to keep going the whole way.

I could have easily slowed to a mild jog, a saunter, a walk, or a plethora of other words obtainable by consulting a thesaurus. Or I could have taken a couple shortcuts, cut across some grass; skipped the extra lap. Would anybody have known? No, probably not.

But what I was thinking the whole time, while hearing the clicking of the steps I wished were there, was that I want to run the whole way in everything that I do. Even thought sometimes it's hard, sometimes it hurts, sometimes I don't think I can take another step, I still keep doing it because at the end of the day, I know it's going to pay off in the end. I don't think I could be sitting here right now without crushing guilt if I hadn't gone the whole way or if I had taken any shorcuts. Right now, looking back at what felt like pure hell doesn't seem so bad now, and it was certainly worth it.

I'm going to go out and run again a couple days. It's probably going to be difficult again. I'm probably going to almost throw up again. But I'll keep working toward finishing the race, because I wouldn't be able to look at myself in the mirror if I gave it anything less than my best shot and failed, and I'll keep imagining those footsteps beside me.

Bring it on, summer.

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."
-2 Timothy 4:7