I Did It

I finally worked up the nerve to do it.  I mean I was pretty sure I was going to do it, but clicking that "okay" button was a lot harder than it would seem.  It wasn't the $72.00 part, that wasn't a big deal.  It was those threatening voices that were taunting me, "You can't do this", "Why on earth would you want to?", "You don't have enough time", "You are going to fail".  But I didn't listen.  And I did it.  

I know you are probably asking, "What the heck did you do?"

I did this.

One 1500 meter (or 1640.42 yards, which equals about 33 laps in a 50 yard pool) swim followed by a 25 kilometer (24.9 miles) bike ride coming right up.

With only 5 weeks left to train (really only 4 1/2 because I take a break before the race), I am in this.  Not to win it, but to hopefully beat my times from last year when I did the Buckhead Border Challenge Relay.  

Buckhead Border Challenge July 21, 2013

I have only been training on the bike for a few weeks.  Today I took my first long bike ride, which was 18 miles.  The sky was blue, the birds were singing and the cyclists were out en masse.  There is nothing like the thrill of passing a huge herd of cyclists on River Road.  What is a vehicle driver's biggest headache, gives me the boost I need to push myself.  They nod or say "hello".  It is biker code to do so.  It is to say that even though you are biking solo, you are not alone.  We are a team.  Not only does it give the sense of camaraderie, it gives an identity.  Recently I have been known as the girl who had a miscarriage at 18 weeks, but today I was a cyclist.  And I felt on top of the world.   

However, losing my child will always be a part of who I am.  And it is part of why I am doing this race.  I am doing it for the ones who can't.  For Ezraela, the child I lost, and for those with debilitating medical conditions:  interstitial cystitis, lupus, ehlers danlos syndrome, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and the list goes on and on, who can only dream of competing in an event such as this.  I do it to give hope.  To let people know that they can.  


In the midst of any hardship or suffering it may be difficult to believe that a better ending, a fuller life, is just ahead.  Our first challenge is to hear the promise.  God has promised us more than we can ask or imagine.  Believing comes next.  

Anne Corcoran

God has promised so much to his children.  That he will do more in us than we could even ask or imagine.  We just have to hear his promise and believe it.  

He did it last year in me when I completed the Buckhead Border Challenge.  I am believing that he has given me the drive and stamina to do it again this year.  I mean, if anyone can help me do it, surely he can. 

GAME ON.