Last year, Greg ran the 2013 Boston Marathon. He finished before the blasts went off, hearing the explosions from the Boston apartment where he was gathered with coworkers who ran. They assumed it was a cannon blast to announce the finish of someone special. I wish they’d been right. (You can read my post 2013 Boston Marathon blog post here.)
Some of his coworkers didn’t finish, last year. If he’d gone back to see one of them cross the finish line, he would have been perilously close to where the explosions took place.
But he didn’t. And he wasn’t. And he got home safely.
This year he’s running again, in the biggest and most emotionally charged Boston Marathon in history. He doesn’t have a time goal, he just wants to soak it all in. All 26.2 miles of screaming spectators and the strongest runners ever.
He’ll share the road with giants like Shalane Flanagan, Massachusetts raised and a Boston Strong Olympic athlete.
He’ll share the road with runners who have disabilities, a pregnant woman who can do 26.2 with a 19 week baby bump, first responders from the Marathon Bombing, two runners with dwarfism, and a whole bunch of AWESOME.
He’ll share the road with a group called “4.15 Strong”, survivors injured in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing who trained to run this one. For many, it’s their first marathon. Some of them weren’t even runners a year ago. They’re not just Boston Strong, they’re Boston Brave, Boston Believers, Boston INVINCIBLE.
I remember the jump in faith it took me to believe I could even begin to train for a HALF marathon, let alone a full marathon, and one where I’d been injured, and emotionally traumatized, near the finish line.
These are some incredible people who will be sharing that road with Greg.
Running the Boston Marathon has always been a huge honor. Because of the race’s popularity, you have to either train hard enough and long enough to run fast enough to qualify at another marathon, or raise a huge amount of money (usually $5,000) for charity. By the way, if you raise money for charity, you STILL have to be fit enough to make it those 26.2 miles!
This is an event where EVERY. SINGLE. PERSON. who runs by has done something incredible. They are incredible athletes, philanthropists, or both. And there are thousands of them. THOUSANDS. And more who would have joined them if they could have.
I’m worried that standing there, watching all those incredible people running by, that I won’t be able to do anything but cry. A few tears might be normal, but I’d really like not to traumatize my children. (Two and three year olds don’t understand the concept of “happy tears”.)
Behind all the positive emotion, and the thrill of the magnitude with which runners and the B.A.A. and the cities of the Boston Marathon are reclaiming this event, there’s a little nagging worry that something might happen to Greg.
I don’t like it. I don’t want to listen to it. I don’t want terror to win. I want to be Boston Strong, Boston Brave, Boston Ballsy. But with all the new regulations, all the additional police force, I know I’m not the only one considering a potential threat.
Do I go in to try to see Greg towards the finish line? Do I place both of my children’s parents in the city of Boston on Marathon day?
I love giving a giant middle finger to fear and paranoia and terrorism, I really do… but I love my children more.
I’m not sure what I’ll do… but I know this.
I’m proud of Greg for running, and I’m proud of Boston for hosting the biggest, most powerful Boston Marathon ever, and for working so hard to make sure it’s the safest, too. If you’re spectating, please check out the BAA guide for spectators, and let’s help them do their job to keep this race safe.
Most of all, let’s be thankful for this show of human spirit. What a triumph to see what people are capable of. It makes you wonder, if you could harness your own Boston Strong, what could you achieve? Could you chase away depression, or substance abuse, or former trauma? Change your career? Be the person you want to in your relationships?
Ask yourself: if I could accomplish anything, I would _____________.
Maybe it’s not 26.2. But maybe if you put in the time, energy, and prioritization that it takes to run 26.2, you could do it… whatever it is.
Good luck to all of the Boston Marathon runners – I’ll see you Monday 🙂
