19 days and counting.

That’s a mere nineteen days until the Pittsburgh Marathon, when I will run (and admittedly, thanks to a persisting leg injury, walk) 26.2 miles. This will be my second full marathon, but the journey has been no less challenging and no less exhilarating. I completed a 20 mile run (!) this past weekend and will (THANK GOD) begin to taper starting this week. But don’t let that fool you, my taper includes a 16 mile run this weekend. 🙂

But what’s running for four hours straight anyway? To those who have never experienced it, I like to describe it as no different that doing any one thing for hours on end. At a certain point you just keep going and going. You stop thinking about the action.

To me, it’s not unlike trying to read the complete Lord of the Rings trilogy in one sitting. At some point, eating and going to the bathroom become second priorities to finding out what happens to your beloved characters. Usually, you enjoy the ride, but at some point the battle scenes start to feel too long and your eyes begin to glaze over the lyrics to another one of Tolkein’s songs. But you just keep reading.

After all, Frodo throwing the ring into the firry pit is obviously the objective, but becoming a spectator to the battle of Helm’s Deep or a sighing over a smoldering love affair between Arwen and Aragorn or witnessing Frodo and Sam hiding among the rocks in Mordor FOR THE THOUSANDTH TIME was part of the journey. You can’t really get to Mordor without it.

Did I really just describe the marathon finish line as Mordor?!

Well, hell, it basically is. There’s just a lot more cheering and a lot less fire. But in the end, you sure do feel like you just saved the Shire.

Cheers!

Sarah

“It is a strange fate that we should suffer so much fear and doubt over so small a thing. Such a little thing.”