Running Away from Home

Since January, I've been training for a Half Marathon. Prior to setting that goal I never imagined myself running 13.1 miles. But it seemed like the right thing to do and I knew that if I set smaller goals, a 5k and a 10k, and if I found a training schedule followed it, I would be able to do it. Well my first Half Marathon is on August 20th, and I am ready! I can do it! I know I can. Today I had my final long training run, I ran 12 miles. I was a little scared, because I got sick and I've been kind of lethargic and my knee hurt while I was running 11 miles last week. But I've done everything I know how to do, I stretched and tried my best to use my cross training days to strengthen my knees, I made sure to make spaghetti for dinner last night, and I told my Heavenly Father all about my desire to run and my fear of not being able to, because of injury or illness.

We have super nice neighbors and there have been several who have helped me out during the last 8 months, watching the boys for me while I ran 5 or more miles (they can be fun companions for 2, 3 or 4 miles but they get bored and whinny after that) and today was no exception when it came to helpful neighbors. At 7:45 a kind 13 year old neighbor (J's favorite babysitter) came over to watch the boys and I ran away from home.

I usually walk down to the corner and then start running, with a vague idea of where I want to go.Today I took a path that I've taken before, but it felt different today, it felt new. I ran through my usual neighborhoods but about a quarter of the way through my run I found my way onto the Jordan River Parkway. It was a delightful experience, but I think the thing that made it great was the fact that I wasn't alone. To the casual observer, I was alone, but what they didn't realize was that I was talking to God. I was still a little nervous about the distance, about my knees, I wondered if I was pushing myself too far, too fast. And even tough I had told Heavenly Father all about last night as I went to bed and this morning as I woke up, he was very much willing to let me keep talking to him. Soon my pleas of "Please, just let me run, please bless my joints, bless that they won't hurt" turned into praises of "I feel so great! Thank You so much for letting me do this!" It was pretty amazing. I totally have the best running partner ever!

So yes, I was running away from home, 6 miles away from home to be exact, I really felt at home the whole time. At 6 miles I turned around and headed back along the same path, each step taking me closer to my sweet babies, each step bringing me closer to my Heavenly Father. That is how it felt. I liked it. I think it helped me understand why it is important to pray always, to always have a prayer in our hearts, to always keep that line of communication open. I mean, I didn't receive any great personal revelation, nothing life changing, just a sweet peace and the sure knowledge that my pleas were heard and my prayers were answered.

Just thought I would share. Thanks for listening.