My mother was 67 years old when she died. 15 years after here first cancer diagnosis. I was 26 years old. That’s right for 15 years she lived with 3 major cancers. I say she won the battle since at that time in our medical history we knew little about our protein mapping and genetic make up and did not have the same advances in medicine. How did she do it? She was determined. Equipped with her faith she was determined to be there for me and my two nephews who moved in with us when my sister died in 1980. Stress and anxiety was put on the shelf in order for her to survive.

I am now determined and will carry the torch for her on October 25^th. I will be running my third and possibly last marathon on that day in beautiful Washington DC with many other runners some of whom have done this many times and others that have never done it. I can not wait! I am determined and I have faith. I know, some of you are saying, “sure Mike make us look bad”, or some are saying, “I could wait a life time and then some!” but I am serious because this time is different. Now I don’t proclaim to be a chronic marathon runner or one who searches far and wide to move after Personal Records, but I am an addict and I readily admit that! I am spiritually and psychologically determined to finish another 26.2 miles knowing that 4 hours of my life pales compared to 15 years of cancer.

The history of my addiction dates to 1999 when I took up the sport/activity of running. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be excited about running. The prospect of lacing up running shoes and heading out for some “hills” or “speed” work made me giggle and mock but then I was fooled and now I am addicted. I have often said that running should be the first directive given to anyone looking to change something about themselves. I have also been known to say that any “support” group should have a running component. In fact sometimes a running group will become your support group and you will not be able to live without the friends you make! Trust me it happens!

So this begs the question. Why do I run? The first reason is its the perfect antidote to all that affects me. Plus its easy. No, its not easy to run 3 miles, 5 miles or even 1 mile if you haven’t done it before but it is an easy prospect for a solo activity that reaps many benefits. You lace your shoes and go. You go until you want to stop. You go until you reach your goal, which could be STOPPING without dying, but you just GO. Nothing to learn, no one “coaching” you, no limits to places to go, again just GO. Now I could use many metaphors here but stepping slowly, quickly, hard or soft one stride at a time is much like the lives we lead. Hills, flats, wet, dry, hot or cold can all be used to describe our lives. Our lives in the present moment or our lives over the course of many years. The bottom line is nothing is a straight line but put those first steps and 100′s of others one at a time in front of each other and you will find the most affective approach to any problem solving activities I have encountered. Other reasons are simple as well. Its an inexpensive activity. You can do it when you travel. You can do on vacation. You can pick some place you drive to and then run. All the while logging one more step in your quest to get faster or breath easier. Go longer or simply just putting a string of days together where you can say wow I just ran 4 days in a row.

Determination and faith. Put them together and realize your dreams are a lot closer to reality than you think.

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