This time last year, both boys and I were sick with the flu. I was too exhausted to even be depressed about it. Ha. It took me out for a couple weeks with quite the respiratory congestion, which halted my running. However, I overcame that and immediately got back to running, hoping 2015 would be the year I finally found the boldness to enter at least one race. Little did I know what possibilities God held for me this past year.
For most of my life, seeing my fears very clearly has been easier than even sensing my hopes... which became a weighty burden that prevented growth with its moldy, oppressive anxiety. I battled the negativity and temptations in my mind through many prayers. I specifically asked God to help me see hopeful plans more clearly than all my imagined fears (and not just in running). And I clearly asked him to give me passion for something good (and not just in running).
Well. God is a good parent. And He gives generously when it is for good. Praise Him for his mysterious yet tangible ways!
In April, during the week of the Boston Marathon, I learned of a little blond lady named Shalane Flanagan. Google her. She is an Olympic athlete, and her 10K pace is less than 31 minutes. (WOW!) I read about her history as a runner on one of the running sites I follow via Twitter, and the possibilities for my own running became clearer to me. Maybe it's because she has blond hair like me? Maybe it's because our society is recognizing women's abilities in a more positive way than the past? Maybe it's because I turned 30 in March, and instead of fearing my mortality, I now want to embrace what is left of it? Whatever the answer, a mental dam in my mind broke the day I read about her, and I wanted to run FAST for the first time in my life. Up to that point, I just wanted an effective cardio workout that kept me slim, as well as a peaceful escape for my mind.
Since April, I have shaved more than 10 minutes off my 6-miler. I used to do it in 55 minutes, and I am consistently keeping it under 45 the past month.
I ran my first race at the end of August in Clinton, KY. A church hosted a 5K to raise money for a mission trip. My goal was to run it in less than 24 minutes, and I completed the race in 22:56, as the first woman and fifth person to cross the finish line.
In September, I ran a huge Chick-fil-A race with a new friend in Memphis. That was fun! The same friend and I also ran a fun four-mile obstacle course on Halloween, dressed as chefs. Ice water, climbing walls with ropes, crawling on wet grass under barbed wire -- SO FUN!
I ran my first half-marathon (something I'd wanted to do for years) on October 17 in Grand Rivers, KY, through the Land Between the Lakes Park. Oh, my, it was so beautiful! My initial goal was to run in under two hours, and as I trained, I knew that was certainly going to happen. My finish time was 01:45:15. I was almost the first-place woman, but a woman I hadn't seen since I passed her at the beginning of the race beat me by one second on the last tenth of a mile -- it was SO EXCITING to sprint to the finish with her! I was the eighth-place human, second-place woman.
I haven't raced since that half because life got busy with a two-month full-time substitute teaching job as a friend's maternity replacement. Thankfully, I have been training five days a week throughout that crazy time. I purchased some new tools with the money I earned (another answered prayer). One of those tools is a stationary bicycle. My feet are small, and if I run hard on them every day, I get injuries. The bike is wonderful for cross-training because it keeps my cardio strong... and it strengthens muscles that make me a faster runner, all while giving my little footsies the recovery they need. I am very thankful for the tools I requested.
Tomorrow I am racing in a New Year's Day 5K in town, and I look forward to seeing what my body can do with the continued training and faster speeds I am gaining. The competition and adrenaline of a race are so motivating! My skills seem better suited for distance than short speed, but I feel like the 5K will be a good speed workout for hopefully busting some more mental blocks.
Lord-willing, I will be running a half-marathon in Lebanon on February 6, as part of my training for the full-marathon I will be running on April 9 (Lord-willing) here in town. I also have a 5K planned with one of my best friends in March... and I am hoping to run a fun inflatable 5K with some friends in May. And I can't look much farther than that from here, but I pray God continues to provide the passion, health, and opportunity to see what He can do with my health or sickness, my successes or failures, my connections to opportunities and other people.
He has already blown my mind. Who would have thought worried little Nicoll, so plain and normal, could achieve these speeds?! I didn't. But now I have some kinda fantastical goals (that I will keep quiet about for now)! However, I pray every day for God to keep me grounded. I want to serve Christ's Kingdom, not my own -- which is a constant temptation. Today is the last day of 2015. Who knows what tomorrow holds, much less next month or next year or ten years from now? One thing I know it holds: God's ever-teaching and -interacting LOVE!
