100 Posts in 100 Days
Yesterday I wrote about being in the last 10 posts of 100 Posts in 100 Days and knowing that the finish line is near. It reminded me of my most memorable finish line story that just happened a few months ago.
Last Christmas, 2021, my immediate family of 3 was together in Sao Paulo. We were apart from our extended family and friends on Christmas Day. My wife is an avid runner and she really wanted the 3 of us to do a holiday fun run. I agreed, provided it was a short distance and something that I could walk rather than run. So, she found us a run.
On Christmas Eve morning, we set our alarms to get up for the run. It was cold and drizzling, a departure from the string of sunny days that had proceeded it. It ended up being a 3k event and maybe 100 or so runners. The course was 3 laps on the street outside a small park.
The race started and off went my wife, the avid runner. Alongside her was our son, age 17. Doesn’t matter that he’s not a runner, he’s 17. He ran. I started walking. After a couple minutes, I thought to myself, “It’s 3k, I walk every day, I bet I could at least jog.” So I did. For about a whole block. As mentioned yesterday, my knees sent the very clear message that running is not for me.
I finished the first lap and still had the company of some other participants who were doing a walk/run mix. I started in the 2nd lap. I was getting passed by runner after runner completing their 3rd lap. When I finished the 2nd lap, a large crowd of already-finished runners were at the finish line sipping on their waters and eating bananas. I seriously thought about stopping and faking that I had done all 3 laps.
But, that’s not the race or the reason I had entered. I had entered the 3k and I had entered so that our whole family could do the run. I also had other goals (like my continuous streak of moving) that I was working toward and completing the 3rd lap would help me achieve those. About half way around the park in the 3rd lap I became acutely aware that I was all alone. There were no other walk/runners and no runners lapping me. When I rounded the corner and could see the finish line, everyone…but me…was there. I was dead last and laughing. But finished. As I crossed, my family tried to assure me that I was not last. I asked them for evidence, “Show me who came in after me.” They couldn’t.
At that point, I was ready to go home. But no. My wife was determined that we all get our commemorative finisher medals. “Where are they?” I asked. “They will give them out at the ceremony” she answered. Sigh. I didn’t understand why we didn’t just get them when we crossed.
So we waited. And waited. And waited. In the cold and drizzly weather. It was a small run, so the tabulation of finishers and places was done by hand. Just when we were about to give up and go home, the ceremony started. Age group by age group the first, second, and third place finisher were called.
My age group came up. I wasn’t even really paying attention. After all, I was last. Suddenly, though, the announcer was struggling with a name. Shannon is not so common in Portuguese. My name was called as 2nd place! Hysterical. I was last, but I was in a small age group, so I was also 2nd.
My wife’s age group came up. They were struggling with the name again. Shauna is also not so common in Portuguese and pronounced slightly differently it references delicate body parts. She was 3rd! But not last.
Then they started the announcements for the male participants. And our son was also called. He was 3rd in his age group! But not last!
I spent the afternoon, and the months since, taking great joy in “beating” my family members by coming in 2nd…and last…at the same time! 🤣
But more than that, I’m proud of keeping my focus on my original goals: do a fun holiday activity with my family and achieve the move/fitness goals I had set for my own self. I did not allow myself to become distracted or deterred on that 2nd lap when so many others had finished or when I was being lapped by other runners. Even when everyone else had finished and I was all alone, I kept on going. I did not succumb to competition or pressure. My own goals and my personal best prevailed. I was second. And I was last. And I was successful!
