Running Uphill

If I were to have ever write a book it would be titled "Running Saved My Life"! This way I have felt about running for a long time. However I can't say I am a perfect runner. I have my falls, spills, and stops. I remembered when I first started running six years ago. I would do a mile and usually on a treadmill or maybe a little more, two miles at most. Somehow I remember going on a date with a girl in Davis Square who was talking about doing the Feaster Five . I was in amazement of this because I could never see myself going past two miles. I think it was that moment that even though I didn't sign up for a race I was going to do my first three miles on Thanksgiving of 2006. And then it was done, two loops around Jamaica Pond and I met my first running accomplishment. Ironic, that now I do this run distance at the very minimum three times a week with no problems at all (more than three usually but we're talking Burren Mondays, Magoun Thursdays, and TMIRCE Saturdays).

This brings me to where I am now and the crossroads I face. Run Clubs have been a big part of my life. I remember doing the Jim Kane Sugar Bowl 5 miler in 2007 and seeing the black and gold Somerville Road Runners tent. I was intrigued because I had just moved to Somerville. Also, I found out that their run club ran out of Khoury's which was only a block from where I lived. I remember doing my first race there when it was the 4.13 miler. I also experience Winter Hill for the first time. If there is one thing to know about me and running it is one thing, "I HATE HILLS"! It had to had been 90+ degrees out that Thursday. I also saw a portly six year old jumping up and down without wearing an article of clothing on. It was probably one of the more scarring moments of my life. Moral of the story is that I did this run several times throughout the summer and early fall. I don't think I really clicked with many of the people there. They were not bad people at all but I didn't feel that I fit in.

I remember signing up for the Jingle Bell Run in 2008 and seeing that there was a 5k run at Magoun's I decided to go for it. I remember my first run and I must have finished 5th out of 20 runners. I felt fast! I remember taking a cool down run with my running Sensei and a new friend I met. The running Sensei stayed but after a couple of weeks the new friend I would never see again. It's funny because I remember Pauline being the one who brought me into TMIRCE on it's 2nd birthday. After a few weeks I never saw her again. Back to Magoun's and the Somerville Striders. For the first time with a running club I felt like I was at home. It didn't take long to know everyone and to feel like I belonged. It was a good feeling and it made me enjoy running even more.

Do I feel like I am a friend to everyone there? No. But I feel close enough to most that I enjoy it. The friend that would give me a birthday card and a beer, the friend who made sure I got blood pressure medicine when my prescription ran out, the friend who makes sure that snacks are there every week, the friend who shares his experiences from his 1000+ races, the friend who will pull me over after running a summer series race to help him fix a Keg, the friend who is going to run 4 marathons a year in different states, the friends who bring in pictures from roller derby and have over analysis of everything that has ever been roller derby, the one friend who I actually convinced to come to TMIRCE, The friend who offered his home for the best house party in quite a while, the friend who moved to New York, The friend who I can confide my relationship issues with, and the friend who helped me get into the apartment I am in now. These people are important to me. In a sense, this is why I run!

However in the past few months a cancer has subsided over the Somerville Striders. The funny thing is you don't recognize cancer until it has set in and on occasion it may be too late. It's subsided and infested itself quietly on the people I love and care about. It's saddening that no one can truly see it. I could only hope that one day this cancer is found and reckoned with! At this time I can't let it infest me. I will remember all of you and hope are your very best. Maybe one day and soon I can come back on a white horse and everything will be ok!

As for now feel free to high five me when I am running in your opposite direction. My intentions are not to be Judas-like. If you can't meet me in ball square you can always meet me at the corner of Medford and Lowell. My running Sensei says that more girls take this route and maybe I should follow them. Taking Medford to Lowell is easy and it burns me down at the end of it. Running Lowell to Medford will keep me honest, and then there is Winter Hill.