I Run Because...

Why in God’s name would I do this AGAIN?  People have stopped asking me that question.  At this point, it is more like “What are you going to do next?”  But really… why? 

The Feel-Good Factor

Running makes me feel good.  Yeah, I have many bad days and I don’t always enjoy it but I usually do.  My dad was a runner.  My oldest sister was a runner.  It has been something I’ve loved since about age 10.  In the 5^th grade I won a trophy at my elementary school for the fastest mile run (girls).  My dad used to take my younger sister and me to 1-mile fun runs in town when we were kids.  That got me started on an ugly collection of cheap prize ribbons.  During those years I had already started what I didn’t know would be something I’d do again some 20+ years in the future:  a record-keeping of personal bests on timed runs.  I was part of the school track team for only 2 out of the 7 years in which being a band geek became a great interference.  My dad tried to get me involved in the local track club but my social anxiety and lack of self-confidence prevented me from continuing my membership with the Panama City Shaldera Panthers!  I’d run now and again around the neighborhood, but nothing serious!  Once I hit college I was able to fit running into my schedule a little more easily here and there.  No races, though.  I’ve been a runner on and off since then until 2006 when it became a normal part of my week in preparation for my first marathon.  Since then it has been a continued addiction that I’m not sure I will quit. 

I love it.  It makes me feel good.  Whether I’m running the race or trying to finish that pesky maintenance run after work, nothing can shake me.  I actually feel happy when I’m running (most of the time)!  Running is one of the few things I know I’m good at that I truly enjoy.  I love competing against myself.  I know I can do well in anything from a 1-mile race to a half or full marathon – a thing that few other people will ever attempt.  Running gives me a little bit of the confidence that it has taken me so long to find.  Not sure where I’ll find the rest of it, but for now this will do. 

The Cause

My passion for running is combined with my passion for service to others.  It is true what they say that when you give of yourself you are rewarded with a feeling that you have done something great to change the world… or at least a tiny piece of it. 

My family lost my dad in the fall of 1996 to the devastating horror which is AIDS.  We were left broken-hearted, shattered, confused, angry, scared, and any other negative emotion you can think of, we felt it.  After many years of silence and finally a bit of therapy, I discovered the marathon training team with which I am now a part of.  There are so many unimaginable, incurable diseases out there.  AIDS is a disease that you don’t hear much about anymore.  People don’t talk about it but it is still around, going strong. 

When he got sick, my dad told me what I had already gathered on my own in the years since 4^th grade:  He was pretty certain that Mr. Smith had died from AIDS.  My 4^th grade reading teacher died suddenly of pneumonia.  I cried for days.  He was one of my favorites.  Since my dad passed away, I’ve met more and more people either living with HIV/AIDS or they have a loved one who is.  I remember these people when I’m running, when I’m fundraising.  The funny thing is I’m sure there are others I don’t even know about…

Daddy

Mr. Smith

Andy D’Andrea

Mike

Raymond

We know how it is transmitted.  There are few ways one can become infected.  I’ve heard of people not wanting to contribute to this cause because they’ve said they can’t support something where the person infected could have prevented it.  To them I would say that it is not our job to make that kind of judgment.  Who left any of us in charge of which people “deserve” our help and which people do not? 

What I do know is that I have been blessed with a healthy body, mind, and spirit.  I’ve given myself the job of working to motivate others to contribute to a cause I care about.  I care about this cause that is so close to my heart.  My family didn’t have a lot when I was growing up, but we had the food and health care we needed to live a happy life.  When our dad was ill, he was able to get the medical care necessary to make him as comfortable as possible.  For that, I am thankful.  Beyond that, there was nothing we could do. 

We are living in tough economical times.  There are both healthy and deathly sick people everywhere whom cannot afford medication, dental care, therapy, or even a bag or two of groceries.  AIDS Project Los Angeles services men, women, and children in need of those things.  I want to help them because I can, because I could not help my own father, because it isn’t my job to decide what they “should” or “should not” do to get those things on their own. 

Please make a contribution if you can.  No amount is too small (or large)!  Whatever you can give, it will be appreciated and used to make somebody’s life just a little bit more comfortable. 

If you’ve made it reading this far, I thank you. 

Bless you,

Hillary

to donate click here:  http://apla.convio.net/goto/hillgirl

To Run or Not to Run

There I am. March 21, 2010. Marathon #3. 4 hours, 51 minutes. Not too shabby!

At this moment, I’m 99% sure I will take on the challenge of completing my 4th LA Marathon in March 2011. My first marathon was in March 2006. I was supposed to train and run with a friend whom ended up getting injured and was unable to run. I quickly found a training team that met on the beach every Saturday. I had a great experience with them (except for that one week where I stupidly wore new shoes on an 18 miler and was in pain before we were halfway done and then boo-hooed at the end). Each week we’d pass by the famous pier, run down Ocean Avenue and through the streets of Santa Monica and Venice, and back to the beach – passing the famous Muscle Beach along the way. People actually work out there! I’ll always remember soaking our aching legs in the icy Pacific upon completing each run. That year will always be written in the books as when I lost my “marathon virginity”. Nice, ha? That’s not my term. I can’t claim it. But it is pretty clever! After completing the first, I knew I would run one again. A few years passed by, however, simply because I did not want to drive my lazy butt down to Santa Monica every week from the valley. Ironic isn’t it? Too lazy to drive an extra 20 minutes on the freeway but not too lazy to run for an hour and a half on what’s known as a “short run”.

2 years ago I found a team that runs for charity. I joined them and I’ve never looked back. I ran my 2nd and 3rd marathons with the National AIDS Marathon Training Program. Both years were absolutely fabulous! Saturdays would not be the same without Griffith Park, Coach Scott, and my homies. I haven’t seen much of my 2009 pace group but we’re in touch. I hope to run with them again someday. My 2010 pace group was just as wonderful. You get to know your people pretty well when you spend countless hours running the streets of Los Angeles/Burbank/Glendale/NoHo/Toluca Lake with them every week. After completing the marathon 6 months ago, my pace group kept training together on Saturdays for another marathon (or a half in my case) in June and we just completed yet another half marathon together in Disneyland on September 5th! I will remember these guys forever and hope to run again with them many more times in the future.

So here I am in the middle of September and I’m tired and unsure about signing up for the 3rd consecutive year. But I probably will. I’m pretty sure I’d miss it too much. I didn’t experience much marathon depression this year since my pace group kept meeting throughout the summer for a run every week. It does happen, though. Once the marathon is over there’s a mini depression stage we all go through. Thankfully it doesn’t last long!

I got a bit of a boost in motivation last Sunday morning. Yeah, I’m tired, but maybe I will join again… During the Disneyland Half Marathon my pace group ran in together, I ran into the director of our training program, Kerry. We were chatting and he told me he’d like me to come by the park the following week to be interviewed for the new promotional video (moi?). We are rebranding. The training program will now be called T2 (Team to End AIDS). So that’s where I was when I had a mental visit from Matt Foley. It was a little strange since I didn’t know any of the runners there – that group is currently training for a marathon in Hawaii. But just being there gave me a bit of a boost and excitement began to grow for the LA training that will begin in just a few weeks. After the runners took off for their 16 mile training run, I stayed behind with a few other interviewees. My small t-shirt actually looked more like a nighty on me. But lucky for me, the nice boys who watch Project Runway helped me fold it up and cinch it in the back to make it look (as I was told)… hot. Ha! Right, time will tell... Anyway, first up: me. Great, so I don’t get to watch some other sucker first and see what it’s all about? Oh well. I was as nervous as a turkey at Thanksgiving but I got through the interview without tears, so hey, that’s an accomplishment. There were so many things I wished I would have said but didn’t think of them until I got home. (I blame it on the reporter. If he'd have had better questions, he could have gotten a lot more out of me). Isn’t that the way these things usually go, though? Oh well. I answered his questions and shared as much as I could all while being put on the spot, quite literally.

So why did Kerry want me to be interviewed? Huh? Well… if I make the cut, you’ll see and hear more about the “story” of my family and why T2 means what it does to me. When it is edited by the professionals, ready and posted, I’ll be sure to share.

Now. I just need to know who’s with me? Who’s in? 2011? Am I alone? Anyone? Anyone? …Bueller?