Completely Redefined!

So, one thing I should say about myself is that I am generally horrible with keeping up with people. I find it so difficult to call friends, especailly those who live out of state. I am bad at returning emails and worse at regular snail mail. If I don't write the email right after I got the first one, I don't write it. In fact, there are probably 3-5 emails I need to respond to but haven't... I am just bad at keeping up with people...

So, why is this important? Well, being as I generally just graze through emails, skimming them and then forgetting about them, I failed to read a very important email that could have made a bit of a difference on Saturday. You see, I saw our training schedule and it read that we were falling back this week and running ten miles. A correction email was sent, but I failed to read it. So you can imagine my surprise when I arrived at the run on Saturday to learn that I was not running ten miles, but actually 14!!

14 Miles?! I mean, I have to psyche myself up to run long distances and I was not psyched at all! Ok, so 10 miles is a long distance, but it was one that I have done before, and so it did not seem so daunting - but 14? That is a whole four miles longer!!! Things change at 14. For example, I need extra fuel and an extra battery for my phone. I only brought one package of fuel and one battery...luckily the water stops had some power gel but my batter died at about mile 12. Part of that was my fault though as I was taking pictures during my run.

I pretty much ran by myself for most of the run, though my coach and friend, Ronda ran with me the last 2 miles. I was so grateful for her company as she really helped to bring me in. However, the first 12 miles were alone, but it wasn't as hard as it would seem. I actually felt like much of it was a meditation or a prayer. The hill country is just so beautiful and I get to see it in such an awesome way! Running up and down the hills, challenging my body to new limits and doing it all as the Sun is rising - it is just so beautiful! Every step is like a prayer, thanking God for His creation.

The only problem with running alone; however, was that I had no one to keep up with, which meant I ran a lot slower than usual. It took me 4 hours to finish! I can't run that slow on race day as that means it would take almost 8 hours to finish (if I decide to run the full marathon)!

You know, thinking about not being good at keeping up with people, I am just amazed that I have been keeping up with this blog. When I started it, I was nervous because I had started other blogs in the past with no success.

Running and fundraising has become such a large part of my life. I think that this expereince has really made an impact on who I am. It may sound overly dramatic, but everyday I see myself surpassing boundaries I had once deemed unobtainable. I see myself reaching goals and finding success in things that at least one person had said I could never do. Realizing that you have the ability to reach a once unobtainable goal is very powerful.

My dad put a comment on my facebook page the other day. He said, "You've come a long way, Julie! Not too many people could so completely redefine themselves as you have over the last 5 years. Keep your eyes on the prize...and keep running the good race! (2 Timothy 4:7)"

This reminded me of where I was five years ago. Some of you may be surprised to know that I was a very sad person. I spent many years in a dysfunctional marriage, had zero self esteem and the idea of walking one block was out of the question. I had a hard time getting out of bed every morning and had no concept of reaching goals.

Somehow, in the last five years, that all changed. Sure it was gradual and took time. It was certainly not easy, there was a lot of pain and I had to face several uncomfortable truths about myself. But I faced them, I conquered them and I moved on. Now, I am a different person. I am happy and confident. I set goals that others think are crazy and I obtain them!

Ok, this is getting a bit long, so I will just say a one more thing about my Wine Tasting. The planning is going well. I have been collecting my silent auction items. I am still working on others and I am getting a good response from people. I also made flyers which I am now distributing. I think I am on track for a great event!

On that note, I also want to give a shout out to Melissa Smiley with Painting with a Twist. This is an incredible place that offers classes which walk you through painting a masterpiece. I have done it and was amazed with the picture I painting (which I got to keep and is on my living room wall)! Melissa donated a gift certifcate for one class, wine glasses and two paintings. One painting, Cherry Blossoms, go with the gift set while the other, Starry Night, is a door prize. Anyway, this is an awesome place to go for a night out! http://www.paintingwithatwist.com/sanantonio/

Well, thank you for reading. I also received a lot of feedback last week which was great! I really loved to hear your thoughts about my posts and am just so happy that you are actually enjoying reading this. Have a great week!

Your Friend,

Julia

Training Log for Week Eleven:

• Mon, August 16: Ran 2.3 miles at the Phil Hardberger park in 35 minutes (15 min/mile).
• Tues, August 17: Cycled 4.95 miles at Brackenridge Park in 41 minutes (8 min/mile).
• Sat: August 21: Ran 14.1 miles though La Cantera. Finished in 4 Hours and 2 minutes (17 min/mile).