It's that Time Again

One year ago, I was living the high life--litterally--in Estes Park, Colorado. About 8,750 feet to be precise. And in the midst of that outrageously beautiful place, I wound up training for a marathon. (I'm going to spare you the details, but if you want to know how I got myself into such a ridiculous endeavor, drop me a note) Seven of us battled the hills of Colorado to begin training for the Chicago and Indy marathons. Despite the fact that just a few short weeks prior to this, I would have told anyone that I never had any itentions of running a marathon, because sprinting was always my first love. But low and behold, we ran and we ran and we ran some more and in the third week of October I found myself in Indianapolis with Bemi and Nick to face that giant beast. It turned out to the be the one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. I had two primary goals: no walking (except at the water stations) and a sprinting finish. God must have given me an extra dose of his strength that day because even though I wanted to quit at mile 20, I sprinted through the finish line to complete my first race since my high school days. It was the greatest test of my physical and mental strength that I have ever faced and I've never felt so drained of every ounce of energy in my body.

And now here I am again, on June 20, commencing my training for the Chicago marathon in October. I'm pretty amped for the training, to be honest, but I can't believe I am getting myself into this again. What a bunch of crazy yard apes we are...five of us are doing it again this year. The first run was three miles today and my knee is already an giving me fits...

I'll say this much for the skeptics out there. It can be done and you'll be a stronger person because of it...and marathon training is a heckuva refinement for our spiritual lives as well. Don't say it can't be done!