Hindsight's 20/20

This may come as a shock to you, but I, Rachel C. Lawrence, am not a runner. Under no uncertain terms would I ever claim I can run, nor have I ever had a brain lapse which caused me to think I had the ability to run more than 100 meters. I know, I know. You all thought I was an avid marathon participant who woke up every morning at 4 in the AM to train. That, my friend, is simply not the case.

However, for some crazy reason (that which I am not privy to), I decided it would be a great idea, perhaps even fun, to sign up for the Cowtown 5K which took place in Fort Worth yesterday. As the date grew closer and closer, it begin to set in just what a gargantuan mistake I had made. Nonetheless, I diligently "trained" for the event and did not miss a day at the gym, or outside if the weather was nice.

If you do recall, yesterday was not one of those "nice" weather days. In fact, I can't remember the last time it was that blistering cold outside. Not only was the temperature in the low-30s, but the wind was feistier than I am when I don't get my 10 hours of sleep. If I had any guts at all, I would have called Christy and claimed I had come down with "flu-like" symptoms. But instead, I faced my fears head-on...

I can't even begin to describe how freaking cold it was out there. The wind hit me like a back-hand to the face. My hands, face and ears burned and it felt like needles were going in my legs. I was beyond improperly dressed without anything to cover my ears or my hands. However, friends, I am proud to say that even though I was the last in our group of about 15 to finish, I did complete the race in under 40 minutes. Now, to most people, that would be a total embarassment. As for me, though, it was an accomplishment that I didn't take a shortcut out of the race and head to nearest Starbucks. I "press(ed) on towards the goal, that I might receive the prize."

All in all, I think my performance, or lack thereof, provided some much-needed comic relief to those around me. I'm glad I did it, but it might be a while before I attempt to do the impossible again. And for me, that's apparently running.