Thanksgiving Training

Our Thanksgiving became somewhat comical when our oven broke the night before Turkey Day. It made it a little more challenging to cook and hold onto that feeling of gratitude but overall it was a great day. It was a day that reminded us of the real things in life to be thankful for- friends, family and blessings from a loving Father in Heaven. It reminded me of my own running... maybe not picture perfect but I sure am grateful that I have the ability to work at it and it comes together at the end to make a beautiful experience.
We had a 7 plus mile run that week. We had Rick drop us off out of town and we made the run home. Most of the way we were on a trail but did venture off of it during the last part. One of the obstacles that we are facing right now is that Manda's skills are so much ahead of my own. The more we train, the faster she gets and I seem to stay at the same speed. I am filled with guilt that I am holding her back from achieving her potential. She assures me that I am not holding her back and that she chooses to go at a slower speed because she just loves me that much and enjoys making the journey together. I do love her kind heart.
Only rarely does she get into a mode of complaining about things, she really is usually an optomist at heart. However, this long run happened to be one of those rare moments. This is when I found that her speed was a blessing... I commanded her to run ahead of me and not let me hold her back! =)She did as I asked and ended up doing the last part of the run with a friend as I trailed behind. For her, the seven miles seemed pretty easy and seemed to pass by quickly. For me, it was a little more challenging but I was able to finish it. She kept saying "Wow, that wasn't bad at all- I could of kept going a lot further". I was just grateful to have finished. Proving once more, that she really is an optomist and strong. I guess it doesn't matter that she is so much stronger than me. The real lesson is that we found the courage to do what we set out to do, helped eachother get started, kept an eye on eachother and were there at the end to say, "Well done". I guess I will just have to swallow some pride and let her inspire me to keep going and count my many blessings that she is always at the finish line encouraging me, and return the encouragement in any way that I can.