Third Week In Training

Yolanda Holder, A Guinness World Record holder, please read her interesting blog at myjourneytoguinness.blogspot.com decided to put me on her Vision Board to coach because she is also a dear caring friend.  I knew her before she became a Walking Diva and joined the Marathon Maniacs club.  After she tied the World Record for 106 Marathons, she called me a few days later and said, "Now that I've reached my goal for for 2010, I really don't have any goals or challenges set for 2011 written on my Vision Board."  I said, "Oh, well you need to think of something, otherwise you are going to get bored.  Also, I really don't know why anyone would pay to walk a marathon.  Especially a half marathon." She was silent for a few seconds.  "What are you doing?" I asked.  "I'm writing your name at the top of the list on my Vision Board to coach you to walk your first-half marathon this year," she said.   My heart skipped a beat!  If you read Yolanda's blog by clicking on the link below you will get an idea of why my heart skipped a beat.  She went on to tell me her reason;  She knows some of the medical challenges I've faced and some of those challenges made it very difficult to motivate myself to exercise everyday.  Therefore, her goal is to coach me and other first-time marathoners (she loves first-timers) to walk a marathon in 2011.  I felt joy and fear. 

Joy:  My faith increased because I knew God was answering my prayer of, "Lord, please  help me.  At 61 years old and I need to get this poor body in condition to keep up with my grandsons and enjoy this life you extended for me.  Lord, please!"  Yolanda telephoned me before I could completely forget about the the dream of my mother calling out to me and my encounter with that mirror.  Also, I had forgotten how I called out to God.  My goodness!  When He answers prayers He answers in Grand Style.  WOW!  You know, just blogging about this experience is really motivating me, but I still need your encouragement!  I want Yolanda to reach her goal so that I can pay it forward.  I'll talk about fear next time.  My blogs may seem long at first because this whole experience with blogging is a love affair and I really hope it doesn't peter out!

I think these pictures are too cute to keep to myself. Grandsons at six months and three months respectively.

We walked  hard and fast this morning trying to get our time down and it is only the third week!  The marathon is in September.  We are close to 24 minute miles and will go for more on Thursday.  Our goal is 15 minute miles.  Up at 2 AM rubbing my body down with muscle relaxers.  Feeling great because when we started this journey three weeks ago my blood sugar reading levels were anywhere between 140 to 176.  This morning my reading level was 116!  And my blood pressure as greart!

How I Decided To Come Out Of The Closet

It was a very cold December morning and I was home alone when I was awakened by the sound of my mother's voice calling my name from a great distance.  My mother was killed in a car accident by a drunk driver 37 years ago.  I slowly raised my head off my pillow so I could scan the room one pixel at a time.  I was not frightened.  I know I will never see my mother again in this life.  I sat up to a comfortable position as I enjoyed the warm feeling of my mother's presence until the feeling gradually subsided.  I jumped out of bed and decided to take a warm shower and get back in bed for another couple hours of sleep.  It was one of the most awful mornings of my life.  Well, maybe it wasn't the most awful because it motivated me to start this journey to Celebrate Living my best life.  After I got out of the shower, instead of just drying myself off and getting back into bed as planned,  I felt wide awake, so I looked at myself in the mirror instead of looking the other way as I normally do.  The mirror is a full-length slider door that leads to my clothes closet and is one that I try to avoid.  But, on this particular morning I felt some kind of inner power that I couldn't resist that seemed to direct me to LOOK!  When I turned and looked at my nude body I felt so ashamed and sad because I felt that I had neglected a valuable part of me.  Yes, I saw the damage I had done by lack of exercise and sitting most days creating miniatures which is a passion that I don't want to give up.  I looked at myself in the mirror as tears started to flow down my cheeks and I felt so much self-pity. My swollen lymphedema arm for which there is no cure, looked out of place.  My best looking boob was sagging too far and the other boob was looking so pitiful just hanging there scarred from a lumpectomy 11 years ago.  It wanted to be loved and through my tears I threw it a kiss and told it how much I loved it.  I raised my swollen arm to my lips and kissed it too.  Afterwards, I wrapped both arms around my body as snugly as I could and peeked through the tears at the rest of my body and said, "I'm going to help you too."  When I stepped inside the closet to get a robe, my body was dry except for tears and I screamed to the closet as loud as I could, "I'm coming out of here!"

Thank you Mama! Thank you Yolanda!  Thank you God!  Tomorrow I start my third week of training for the Disney Marathon!