30:31

I did it! I’m so proud to say that this morning at 6:00 am, my alarm sounded and I eagerly (?) rolled out of bed to run my first 5K. I timidly ate my half piece of toast, banana and little bit of coffee along with drinking water like it was my job. We arrived at the site of the Shawn Silvera Memorial 5K right on time and I waited in line to get my number. Lucky number 729. I chatted with new friends I’d made through running and was joined by a long time friend, Ellen who drove up from Northfield to run with me. I had the perfect mix of nervousness and excitement. Really, I’d already run the equivalent of two 5Ks this week, so I was ready!

The race wasn’t easy. The course featured something we hadn’t really trained for: hills. But I kept on going. The chatting between Ellen and I slowly declined as we both got into our running modes and focused on the task at hand. We walked at the turn-around which was also the water station. Once our water was gone, half of mine was down my shirt, we were off again. I ran the whole thing, minus the water stop. The hills were killer. I figured I’d come in around 35 minutes. Boy was I surprised when I stopped my watch and saw that I’d done it in 30:31!

The weather was great, the trail was beautiful. I was blessed to be surrounded by supportive friends and when I made that last turn towards the finish, I saw the crowd gathered at the finish line, including my friend Marie who came out to cheer us on. I got goose bumps. Then, I saw my family on the hill. My heart almost exploded with joy and excitement. I started waving to them and then just savored the last few seconds of my long journey. For as long as we trained, it was over so quickly.

I loved it. All of it. The culmination of all of our hard work. The atmosphere. The causes we raised money for. The friends. My family…I can see why people do this running thing.

The evening before, we had a spaghetti banquet to carbo-load and celebrate our season. There was laughter and celebration and some tears as Jennifer Silvera, wife of Shawn, told us of her story and then motivated us to “Be Here Now” and savor every moment. Everyone received an award for their accomplishments, some were serious, some were funny. My award: Most Improved. I’ll say,!When we started, I couldn’t run for 30 seconds without getting winded. Today, 30 minutes and still winded, but only because of those darn hills!