To Run or Not To Run???

 

July is looking to be a record-breaker for rain this year. As sweltering heat, fires and drought plague the West Coast, Boston is on record to be the wettest July since 1872. In the first 12 days, July is the third wettest July ever from 1872 til now. I give thanks every day that we have an Administration addressing the crisis of climate change partnering with the global stage to heal Mother Earth and fiercely working to end the pandemic.

Before COVID, we would have been spending more hours in the gym rationalizing that a swim, treadmill or elliptical workout could be traded for a running day. As we emerge from the pandemic, we have not renewed a gym membership. I woke up at 4:30am {with a little help from our beloved cat Jamie jumping on me asking read that as demanding to be fed} as the rain pelted our window panes. I focused my intention on the rain easing up enough for us to get in our run. I fell back to sleep until 6:45am when the alarm went off.

Still pouring...

It was a rest day for Ruth Anne so the decision was up to Tom and me about whether or not we would get out the door for a run. At least it wasn't cold as it was on Memorial Day Weekend. We had done strength training on Sunday so we could not do another strength training session. I could not bear the thought of heading to the basement for a treadmill run in summer. 

We donned lightweight layers, a water belt to protect our phones and to hydrate, and off we went!

We smiled and laughed embracing the elements. We weren't sure if the Reservoir would be flooded but once we got there it looked like we could run around the path. By the time we got to our halfway mark, the puddles on the other side of the Reservoir were impossible to wade through. We reversed course to finish our 5K.

 

"Feet soaking wet - check." Tom commented at one point.

"Ooh I'm not there yet," I said but a short time later, my shoes and socks reached their saturation point.

Although we have had many runs in the rain throughout our running career, neither one of us could remember running in a steady torrential downpour as we experienced yesterday. We fondly recalled a long run training for the Bermuda Half Marathon one year but the rain would ease up at times. The sun even came out at the end of that training run.

"I can't believe we're doing this," I said to Tom as we were on the back end of our 5K."

"I don't know many almost 70 year olds who would be out here splashing in the puddles and slogging through a 5K at 7 in the morning before breakfast."

"This is what keeps us young at heart!"

Ruth Anne greeted us with her raincoat on  as we came into the yard. She had breakfast ready for us.

On the run we strategized that we would peel off our outer layers and toss them into a trash bag, get changed upstairs and throw everything into the wash. I was in shock at how much our wet clothes weighed. "Hey that was like running in a weighted vest," I quipped.

I felt cleansed mind, body and soul inside and out. As one who has endured and overcome childhood paralytic polio and trauma, I felt deep gratitude for every rain soaked footstep!

Experiences take on richer and deeper meaning as we emerge from the pandemic. Feeling connected to nature and the Divine has taken on a sense of urgency. I couldn't bear to be confined to a treadmill when it was safe to run outside. There was a welcomed sense of unbridled freedom during the run and a feeling of being able to conquer any challenges that may come our way.

The run also inspired this poem:

Believe

Rain pounding window pane
believe
be grateful
grace is raining down.
When faith reigns
all is well
delight in puddle play
forever young.
Fret not
flood of emotions
flowing
all storms pass.
Rainwater cleanses
clearing confusion
heart beats with eager anticipation
smile of inner knowing
sun shines again.

From my heart to yours
In health and wellness,
Mary

Visit my website to learn more about my journey of transformation in the wake of paralytic polio and trauma to the finish line of the 2009 Boston Marathon and beyond.

Be sure to listen to my recent conversation with Liz Brunner, award winning journalist, now CEO of Brunner Communications on her podcast Live Your Best Life. I share how I live my best life despite the challenges that I faced at an early age.

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