Living Outside The Lines: “Endure To The End”

There are times during the race I’m tired; I’m struggling to pick up my feet; I’ve got a side stitch; but still I press on. There are times I have fought through tears to keep going.

Becky J Miller | Exclusive to Corridor News

Half marathons are my addiction, well, one of many. I love challenging my body to run 13.1 miles. I love the euphoric feeling when I cross the finish line. I love telling people that I run 13.1 miles for fun and seeing their stunned reactions.

Each race is different; my husband and I have run the Shiner Half Marathon twice, and the only similarity between the two races was location.

During our second race, the weather conditions were less than ideal; it was cold, rainy and windy. Even AccuWeather could not help us decide how to dress for the race.

By gun time the rain had ceased and temperatures had warmed, but oh that wind! The gusts were blowing at about 30 mph, head on.

No matter how hard one trains I don’t think anyone is ever prepared to race against a strong headwind. For the first six miles there was absolutely no reprieve, every step was a battle.

As I struggled against the wind I thought about enduring and what it really means.

Many of us consider endure a dirty word, but it’s not. It means to undergo (as a hardship) especially without giving in, did you see that part; without giving in. It also means to remain firm under suffering or misfortune without yielding.

As a runner, I truly understand what it means to endure; you cannot complete a race without endurance. If you choose not to endure, you quit; you fail.

Runners who don’t finish earn the label DNF (did not finish). In the world of running, it’s better to come in dead last than earn a DNF.

I have a tattoo on my foot that says, “Endure 13.1” It has a dual purpose. I know the tattoo is there, and it reminds me to press on both in life and on the racecourse.

Even for well-trained runners, completing 13.1 miles is not what one would define as easy.

There are times during the race I’m tired; I’m struggling to pick up my feet; I’ve got a side stitch; but still I press on. There are times I have fought through tears to keep going.

We all love the stories of persevering and enduring, so why do we seem to run and hide from adversity rather than facing it head on? We can never overcome or be victorious if we don’t fight.

The song from CMT’s hit television series, “Nashville, “Don’t Put Dirt on My Grave”, has a line that says, “Come hell, come high water, you push on me I’m going to push back harder.”

That’s a great way to approach life. Sure, there are times you may want to bury your head under the covers and hope it will all go away, but hiding from adversity doesn’t help anything, it only prolongs the agony.

Enduring isn’t just for runners, it applies to every obstacle we face in our lives. I did not complete my education until I was in my 40’s, and there was some serious enduring during my time as a student. Give me a paper to write any day of the week, but math?? Not so much.

I scored so poorly on my placement test that I had to take TWO remedial math courses before I could take the ONE I needed to graduate. Those courses were a struggle, but like any other hardship in my life, I fought, I studied, and I cried, but I pulled through and passed.

How we endure hardship is a testament of our character. Trust me when I say people are watching. How we endure may convince others who are facing trials to batten down the hatches and to push through, or to just give up.

Does adversity bring out the fighter in you? Do you endure until the end, or have you been a quitter? I want to encourage you to fight when things are hard; to endure until the resolution comes. If you’re like me, you’ll get through it, then stand there and weep tears of joy because you persisted, and now you are in a better place because of it.

Until Next Time,

Becky J Miller

“Warrior Princess”

Becky J Miller is a contributor and is exclusive to SM Corridor News. You can read more of Becky’s columns in Lifestyle.