I made it weird.
Around mile 8, I started seeing all the super fit runners who’d already made it to mile ten and were on their way home. And something came over me and I just got so happy.
It’s been a very long year and a half for all of us
Many people I know (just like me) had to reinvent themselves professionally.
Many people I know (just like me) lost people we loved.
Many people I know (just like me) struggled through their own health challenges.
But today! Today there were hundreds of runners out of the streets doing their final long training run. And I became overcome with joy.
Maybe it was the endorphins.
Maybe it was the music in my ears.
Maybe it was the misting rain.
But I think it was the triumph of human spirit.
We made it.
We’re making it.
We’re gonna make it.
So I started to smile. A big, loopy, goofy smile. And I made eye contact — hard, piercing, daring eye contact — with every runner passing me.
I made it weird.
Most looked away. Who’s the freak?
But some smiled back.
And each one that did shifted their body, their pace, their effort.
It made them lighter. It made me lighter.
And when there were no more runners and I was all alone again, I tried to pull the smile off my face. But I couldn’t.
Maybe it takes too many more muscles to frown. Or maybe my dehydration was stopping my facial muscles from responding to simple brain commands. Or maybe the dehydration had simply glued my lips in place.
But if you were running this morning and some crazy lunatic smiled you down and dared you to enjoy the hell that is this last leg of training, that was me.
And I’m not sorry.
