Serenity

Just want to take a moment to share my pride right now! I ran my first marathon today! It was pouring rain all night, but it cleared just before the race. At first it was all hot and muggy. The clouds parted about 8 miles into the run, and then it got really hot and sunny- 75 degrees on November 15th! Around the last 8 miles or so, the wind picked up, and we had a terrible headwind! It made us all feel like we were running in slow motion.

During the first mile of the race, I heard someone talking behind me, and the voice was awfully familiar…I turned around and sure enough- there was Penny! She and I ran the first 3-4 miles together, which made for a fun start. I felt pretty good for the whole run. Around mile 22 or so, my legs were starting to feel like stone, and I was ready to reach the end! The last mile felt so long! But as I came down the home stretch, it was all downhill, and the spectators were cheering like crazy. I felt amazing as I crossed that finish line! My final time was 4:37:29. So now I have accomplished something that has been on My Life’s To-Do List for a long time, and I did it all on my own! I’m very proud!

My mom took this picture just after I crossed the finish line