Am I a driven person? Most people who know me would answer yes. I remember sitting in the hospital bed just after my oldest son was born and reading an article about how young, uneducated mothers statistically have children who are underachievers, on welfare and are ill prepared for life. The article hit a sore spot. I had just given birth 10 hours before to a beautiful boy but at that time in my life I was unwed (and not certain if I would be getting married), had no college education and did not know how I would support this precious child. I did not want this hopeless, pitiful, bleak future the article painted for me or my son. Then and there, I did not know how or when, I decided I would go to college and change my fate (if this is what fate had in store for me).
Fast forward many years later~the father of my oldest son and I had been married since my son was three months old and we had been blessed with two more beautiful children. While money had always been tight (and sometimes virtually nonexistent), we did the best we could with what little we had. At times that meant my sweet husband worked three jobs so I could stay at home with our children and we just did without. When my youngest was beginning first grade, I decided to go to the local community college. At first, it was just a class here and there but I enrolled each semester. Although it was not expensive, I could not have afforded to do so without the generosity of scholarships. I went on to transfer to University of Nevada, Reno (1 1/2 hours each way from our home) while juggling a full time job, kids, husband, and every day life. As I completed my B.S. in Finance, I took the LSAT and was accepted into law school. My dear husband and family made the sacrifice to move to the San Francisco Bay Area for law school and we have lived here since. It took many long years to complete the goal, but I did it.
My children saw their mother struggle with classes, finding balance with all the different pressures, and how important education was to me and each, in turn, is now attending college.
When I was contemplating setting goals for my fitness life, I reflected on this goal. Why? Because, to be honest, I am really good at making lists but hardly ever follow through and reach the goal. But this goal was different. Again, why? I knew what I wanted and why. I had decided on a certain outcome and the reason was ingrained in my heart. What did I need to make this goal? I relied heavily on my husband and his wisdom and support. I could not have done this enormous task without him. Even when I sat across from him in our small kitchen and (finally) had the courage to tell him that I wanted to go to law school as our three kids battled for legos and nerf guns in the other room, he just looked at me and said, "What do you need from me to help you?" I then explained that there is no law school close to us and it would mean moving just so I can go to law school. My husband, a games dealer across the Nevada state line for a casino, took this in stride since it would mean there would be no job to transfer to since gaming is illegal in California. He took a deep breath and said that if that is what I wanted to do, the family would support it. Less than a year later, we boxed up all of our worldly possessions, took what few possessions would fit into my childhood room and moved in with my wonderful parents who welcomed me, my husband and their three grandkids into their home and heart. Three years later I graduated from law school.
Now, my running partner is my dear, sweet husband. We are both trying to lose weight as we train together. We completed the Color Me Rad 5k and have signed up for a Veterans Day 11k as this will help us move closer to the goal of the half marathon. We both are signed up for the Disney World Princess Half Marathon.
What does it take for me to achieve my goal? To have a clear picture of what success is and to have support in reaching the goal. For the Disney half marathon, my goal is to finish standing up. That's it! I know I will not be the fastest and I don't care if I am the slowest. I just want to finish 13.1 miles with a smile on my face and maintain a minimum of 16:00 minute per mile pace so I do not get "swept up."
I am starting to get this "goal" thing. How about you?
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