Running in the rain
As I came down the hill and turned the corner, the Pacific Ocean came into view. It was a beautiful sight, surf angerily churning billows of white foam from dark green. It would have been even more beautiful if I didn't have to bow my head, for I was being pelted by wind driven raindrops that felt like shards of glass exploding against my cheeks. It was then I remembered one of my favorite stories.
It must have been about six years and a different lifetime ago that I proudly announced to my family I had signed up to do a 6K run. My son, who was a young teenager at the time exclaimed for a ll the restaurant to hear: "Are you drunk?" My wife, laughed and asked, "Is your life insurance premium all paid up?" But my daughter, who was probably about 9 or 10, took my arm and squeezed. "Don't listen to them Daddy, I'm really proud of you. . . . How much will you get paid if you win?" It was my turn to chuckle then. "Oh, I won't win. But because my company sponsors the race I'll get a discount to enter." It was the first time my daughter gave me the incredulous look which I have become more accustomed to as she moves through her teenage years. "You're paying to run!?!" she cried. "Daddy, that's just ..... stupid."
Now, I did feel a little silly, looking like a drowned rat plodding down the road today in the rain. And I was questioning whether a trip to the gym might have been a better choice on this day. But feeling stupid? Not really. A little rain never hurt anybody and I did enjoy it for awhile (although mile 7-9 of this 9-miler were pretty miserable).
For the record, my wife has been very understanding and supportive of my training and this marathon thing. My son has also been encouraging and seems somewhat interested (he's a college student, he's got a heck of a lot more on his mind than his dad running in the rain). And my daughter, well, as you may have read here before she's now on her high school's cross country team and seems to enjoy running with me when she can. I'm hoping that running becomes a lifelong sport for her. Of course, she has yet to pay to run. That would be just .... well, you know.
It must have been about six years and a different lifetime ago that I proudly announced to my family I had signed up to do a 6K run. My son, who was a young teenager at the time exclaimed for a ll the restaurant to hear: "Are you drunk?" My wife, laughed and asked, "Is your life insurance premium all paid up?" But my daughter, who was probably about 9 or 10, took my arm and squeezed. "Don't listen to them Daddy, I'm really proud of you. . . . How much will you get paid if you win?" It was my turn to chuckle then. "Oh, I won't win. But because my company sponsors the race I'll get a discount to enter." It was the first time my daughter gave me the incredulous look which I have become more accustomed to as she moves through her teenage years. "You're paying to run!?!" she cried. "Daddy, that's just ..... stupid."
Now, I did feel a little silly, looking like a drowned rat plodding down the road today in the rain. And I was questioning whether a trip to the gym might have been a better choice on this day. But feeling stupid? Not really. A little rain never hurt anybody and I did enjoy it for awhile (although mile 7-9 of this 9-miler were pretty miserable).
For the record, my wife has been very understanding and supportive of my training and this marathon thing. My son has also been encouraging and seems somewhat interested (he's a college student, he's got a heck of a lot more on his mind than his dad running in the rain). And my daughter, well, as you may have read here before she's now on her high school's cross country team and seems to enjoy running with me when she can. I'm hoping that running becomes a lifelong sport for her. Of course, she has yet to pay to run. That would be just .... well, you know.
posted by dave kellogg at 12:34 AM
1 Comments:
Good for you, running in the rain! I don't think the Dave from a year ago would have done that.
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