Every now and then I have a run that is so great that I do a happy dance at the end of it. I mean that quite literally – I stand in my driveway and do this weird little hoppity-hop thing that I’m sure makes the neighbours more than a little perplexed. I had been looking forward to this yesterday’s run since the weekend. I am currently enjoying some time off from work, so instead of dragging myself out into the dark at 5:00 a.m. yesterday, I was able to wake up at my leisure, get the kids safely off to their respective places, and hit the road at about 9:00 a.m.
I woke up feeling a little rough. Although I had a reasonable amount of sleep the previous night – meaning I got more than six hours – half the night was spent on the sleeper couch with James, who had woken up feeling lonely (quick diversion: I want my kids to know that they can come to me at any time of the day or night. There are people who believe co-sleeping with their children is a Very Bad Thing. I am not one of these people). Here’s the thing about the sleeper couch: it ruins my back. When I sleep there I wake up feeling as if someone has spent the night pounding on the back of my neck with a rubber mallet. However, I was determined to go running – I am a bit weird that way, once went for an eight-kilometre run with a sprained ankle – so I did some stretches, laced up my shoes and went out.
It was only 5km, but it was a really fantastic run. For the first time since returning from my illness/injury, I actually beat my virtual partner. Maybe I should explain the virtual partner. A few months ago I upgraded my training watch to one that has GPS. The new training watch has a feature that allows you to set a target pace per kilometre, and throughout the run you can visually see how you’re performing compared with the target pace. The virtual partner “runs” at the target pace. Since recovering from my illness I have been consistently running fifteen to thirty seconds per kilometre behind the virtual partner. I have been OK with that – I have, after all, been in recovery mode. Today, though, I finished my run several seconds ahead of pace. The psychological boost I felt from that was tremendous.
Yesterday’s run was part of what is turning out to be a phenomenal week. On Tuesday, I had my first consultation with Brandon, my holistic lifestyle coach. Under his guidance, I am going to take steps to get my life in balance. It will have a positive impact on all areas of my life – parenting, running, work, my relationship with Gerard. I feel as if I have entered a new positive phase of my life. I also have a maid of honour for my wedding! There are no words to describe how amazing my friend Michelle is. What started as a simple car-pooling arrangement has turned into a deep friendship, and it will truly be an honour to have her standing beside me when I get married. My friend Jenny also deserves a special mention. She has been my best friend since we were both ten. She has put up with all kinds of crap from me, seen me through some very intense crises, and just been there for me no matter what. The fact that she lives on the other side of the world to me has not lessened our friendship one bit. And because distance will prevent her from being here for my wedding in person, I know that she will be here in every other sense. She will be as involved as she can be in the planning of the wedding – thanks to the joys of the Internet.
Yesterday I went to the airport to pick up my friend Fran. Fran is a South African who moved to Vancouver (well, an hour outside of Vancouver) a few months ago. I have known her for years, and have not seen her for a long time. She is staying with me for a few days: we are planning to hang out, relax, have fun, go running together (even a race on Saturday!), and gossip about people we both used to spend a lot of time with.
In talking about these people – my family, my friends, people like Brandon who are helping me in a professional capacity – I realize just how blessed I am. I am surrounded by really incredible people. I am very lucky, and I hope I can always remember that when things get rough. And I want to say to these people – Gerard, my boys, my Mom, my late Dad, my biological parents who did such an amazing unselfish thing to give me a better life forty years ago, my wonderful, wonderful friends, everyone who touches my life in such a special way – thank you for being you. Thank you for being there.
