Chosen..Marathon For Adoption....for Thandiwe

This past weekend my marathon journey took me all the way to New Braunfels, TX for the inaugural Chosen - Marathon for Adoption. I don't even remember where I heard about this race, but when I came across their site, reading the purpose and mission behind the marathon, I knew that I wanted to be a part of their efforts.  I immediately reached out to race director, Jenni Lord, and told her I wanted to be a part of their event. I know I could have found a race closer to home, but in my heart, I felt like I needed to be there.

 Race Tee

Many of those connected with the race, either volunteering or running had a passionate heart for adoption.  All race proceeds were going towards adoptive families and to help care for the needs of 250 children in a Ukrainian orphanage. And the race struck a cord with many, as over 1,200 people registered for either the half or full marathons.

For me, adoption is at the very core of who I am, as my father was adopted. I wouldn't be here today, if that adoption didn't take place, my life one of the continued blessings through a gift like none other.

 With my dad this past summer in WA

There are 147 million orphans worldwide who long for a family and need a home, yet only 4% of homes contain adopted children. Each week I have been running for a different child from the Ngqeleni District of the Eastern Cape of South Africa. I have run 42 marathons, with 10 left to go to complete my journey of running 52 in 52 weeks, but in heart, and financially, I am running for over 1,500 orphans. Fifteen hundred...that's a lot of mouths to feed, bodies to clothe and hearts to care for. The needs are great, and although I can't "adopt" these children, I have allowed my heart and my feet to adopt them. This race was incredibly special and important to me, sitting at the very essence and core of my year of running.

Children without homes. Children needing love. Children without a family to call their own. And to be part of an event that was focused on bringing that change for children, through the triumph of running, was an honor.

This weekend I carried Thandiwe on my back. Just an infant, Thandiwe is orphaned, never having known her parents. Having a different child to run for each week has taken the problem of poverty and AIDS that shakes South Africa, far beyond numbers. I have a personal reason, for each and every mile, for each and every step. I can't save everyone, I can't fix everything, but I can make a difference, in Thandiwe's life, and I'm not about to pass that up!

 Thandiwe being held

Running has a ripple effect on your mind and body. It changes you. Through time and training, your body grows stronger, faster. You build strength and endurance. It changes your mindset, as you adjust goals, and expand your limits.  In the same way, I hope that my running these marathons, not only changes my life, or the lives of the orphans I am running for, but also yours! It has been the hope of my heart that people wouldn't just read these blogs, but find their calling.

This week I got a note from a girl in college, sharing her inspiration with me. My 52 Beginnings got her thinking and acting, quite literally!  Instead of auditioning for a play, she decided to spend the fees that that would have cost, to go to NJ this December and help teach inner city kids acting. Reading that was like getting the coolest gift at Christmas, I don't even know if I can put into words! It's testament  Because we each have our own loves, our own gifts...and our own reason to give...

Ready to take on the day for Thandiwe, I woke up race morning to the sounds of rain.  I stepped outside to feel the temps, and was greeted with fogged up glasses from the humidity in the air. I have been fortunate to not have had to run a warm or humid race in quite awhile, but it looked like that streak was about to end.

 Trying to remember where you are? Just look in the sink! (Bathroom sink in the place I stayed)

I go to the start area, the blackness of night still covering, the rain having died away. Before we started on our 26.2 or 13.1 journeys a prayer was said, and with that we made our way into the dark. I had figured the sun would have been up by 7am, but I was wrong! It didn't take more than a couple of minutes for me to feel the humidity hit my lungs. I know everyone has different conditions where they can run their best. For most people cooler is better, and I'm definitely in that group. Those first few dark miles, we covered a few hills and I found myself taking note. As this was an out and back course, I knew I'd be taking on the same hills in the last few miles. The sun now beginning to show, the road ahead with a lengthy downgrade, I tried hard not to think about having to run back up it later.

 Start area

The kiss of dawn

We turned to run down River Road, along the Guadalupe River, enjoying water views for most of the race. It was about this point that my stomach decided to protest my late evening, and I'm assuming, the alcohol consuming I had done the night before. I generally stick with a single drink if I drink at all the night before my races. Apparently my indulgence was not well suited for the run ahead. And it was from that moment on that the knots in my stomach built. All the more reason to just completely lay off drinking I told myself, but in the meantime, my stomach would nag me for the rest of the race, keeping that thought fresh. Next I found myself having another discomforting, and rather odd pain. Even now I'm not quite sure what it was, but my back was giving me terrible issues. I started to wonder if I'd lifted too heavy in the gym this week, but whatever it was it held on the entire race as well. The only thing that helped was leaning over to touch my toes, stretching my back, which I did on a regular basis later on in the race. There are days when things are great, and days when running is a challenge every mile. This was one of the latter.

Around mile 5 we passed by a camp ground, the sign in front announcing that it was open year round. What a huge difference from where I live! There were people camped along the river, and with it being early morning, the smell of campfires filled the air. I love that smell!

At mile 6-7, the race took a completely different feel. As the vast majority of runners were running the half, they broke away and turned back for the finish line. We continued on, the road becoming very quiet and somewhat lonesome. I don't mind running by myself though, and even with the few numbers of runners around, I had a chance to talk with several of them along the way. I met several women that were in the process of adopting and I thought just how special this race must be for them.  As it is with humid races, I found I just didn't have the ability to talk and run well. I felt like I had to fight for my oxygen so that alone kept the conversations short.

The sky stayed overcast most of the race, and we got a short rain shower a couple of times while on the road. The rain was a bit of a relief, but not fun when you wear glasses!  I didn't care how wet I got, as long as my camera was covered!

 Hitting the half way point was so encouraging. As much as I don't like out and back courses, being able to turn and know that you are heading home, carries such positive mental relief. On my way back, I came to one (of many) aid stations where children were helping hand out drinks. There was a little African American boy holding out a cup of water. He couldn't have been more than 3. I took the cup from him and as he looked up at me, with his beautiful brown eyes, I had to fight the tears I felt coming on. He just reminded me so much of the children that I am running for his year. Many of them are his size, his age. Maybe it's just the toll of this year of running, but I felt flooded with emotion right then. Forty weeks of my life, 42 marathons, all for children like this! My heart, and body have broken for these children and I know I've said it already, but taking part of this race was monumental for me!

 Here's a sight I don't see every day!

It was still a fight to push through the miles. I took more walking breaks than I would normally, which was a frustration, but I kept on going. The hills in the last few miles were tiresome, especially because the sun was now overhead and the temps risen. It's all about staying focused at that point. The very last part of the race was downhill and I tried to run it well. I crossed the finish line in 4:37,  right away greeted with hugs of congratulations from the race director. She wanted to get a picture, and I was struggling just to get my air. I cooled down a bit, drank 2 bottles of water and smiled, I was done!

 With race director Jenni Lord

I got to see several people cross the finish line that I had talked with on the course and give them high fives and hugs. Running is an encouragement of the soul!

I had been invited by one of the runners that I met on the course to come over to her house and hang out with her and her friends. We had burgers and talked about our race experiences. It was an awesome way to spend the afternoon and a great bunch of people to hang with.

I knew I had the evening to do whatever I wanted, but honestly the last thing I felt like doing was going anywhere. I ended up just having a quiet night in my room and it was good to be able to just reflect on things, one of them being the book I had just read. On my flight over I read The Cross and the Switchblade. If you've never heard of it, it's the true story of a small town pastor in Pennsylvania that felt it laid on his heart to go to NYC and minister to the gangs there. His work has transformed thousands of lives, helping teens deal with drug/alcohol and sexual addiction, creating hope in many places where there was none. He started this work over 50 years ago and it still continues today. All I can say is that his story was beyond moving and motivational!

I know I have been working on a goal to raise funds and make a difference in the lives of children this year, but reading about his work just made me think more deeply about what I need to do. There is so much more that I can do. It made me excited about the chance to give more, and do more personally. This year I have had lots of ideas floating in my head about what I want to work toward next year. I feel like this year is really just the tip of the iceberg and there is so much more to do. My 52 Beginnings started as a means to use running to help change lives. It was about giving these orphans a new beginning. But as much as it's been about a new beginning for them, I think it's about a new beginning for me as well. I will finish my 52nd marathon, but I will not be done. This is truly just the beginning.

Reading that book just put life in perspective. He acted in faith, following what he felt he was called to do. He had no experience, no background in dealing with gangs. But he knew that was where he belonged, where he had to go. Are we doing that too? What is it that is nagging at your spirit? Sitting in my room, I mulled over all this. I thought about what is nagging my spirit. Do I have the courage and faith to follow through?

I am now down to 10 marathons - that's all. The running may almost be done, but the work is not.

  "What a wonderful thing it is to spend a solid hour just being thankful. 

It throws all of life into a new perspective." - David Wilkerson (The Cross and the Switchblade)

Race Stats:

4:37:36 - finish time

67 out of 166 overall

31 out of 90 women 

9 out of 24 in my age group (18-29)