Moms, if I could tell you just one thing, it would be to believe.
Believe in that crazy, far fetched dream that has been floating around your head since you were a child. Believe in the idea that makes your heart skip a beat and leaves you daydreaming during work hours. Believe in your power, your strength, and your ability to overcome limitations others throw your way. Being a mom is a superpower, and having children gives us a strength we never knew existed.
For over half of my life, I have been a runner. I’ve been a slow runner, a long distance runner, a pregnant runner, an injured runner, and a I don’t know what I’m doing with my life so I’m going to run runner. There have been months of injured runner depression and race finishes made of pure glory. There have been easy days, a lot of hard days, 4am wakeups, blisters, chafing, lost toenails, and questionable moments while running in the dark along the greenway. I have tried, failed, and succeeded a few times, but I don’t believe anything will ever compare to the magic that happened along the Boston Marathon course this past April.
Before crossing the start line of the 126th Boston Marathon, the oldest marathon in the world broke my heart on several different occasions, starting 10 years back.
Back in 2012, I had the opportunity to turn one of my biggest dreams (running the Boston Marathon) into reality. With temperatures soaring high into the 80s at the start, I made the decision to step off the course at mile 13. My first DNF (Did Not Finish) left me with a feeling of failure and disappointment that followed me around for months. When I had my second chance at the famous unicorn medal in 2014, my mind was completely shut off to the possibility that I might be running with a stress fracture in my left hip. For 6 miles I ran, for 12 miles I walked, hobbled, and cried. Then finally at mile 18, I collapsed into my husband’s arms as he carried me across the street to the nearest medical tent. The pain that I had been with since the start of the race was finally over, or so I thought.
In the 10 days that followed the race, what I had convinced myself to be torn ligaments, progressively became unbearable. On Wednesday April 30, my husband drove me to the orthopedist, and what I had imagined to be the worst case scenario, would have been welcome news compared to the actual diagnosis. After one quick look at the XRay, Doctor Solic told me to go home and pack a bag. I was headed for immediate surgery. The greater trochanter of my left hip had an 8mm displaced fracture, and in order to not break my hip, I needed a titanium rod with two screws to close the gap. Running was off the table for the foreseeable future.
In the 8 years that passed between my hip surgery and the 126th Boston Marathon, motherhood happened, which has been my greatest teacher. My two little humans have taught me that even when I was sure I couldn’t do it any longer, I could in fact, keep going. The sleepless nights, solo parenting weekends, double ear infections, stomach bugs, and sheer exhaustion that comes with being a parent have brought about a level of resilience that running never did. But it is because of that, I achieved what I once believed to be impossible.
On April 18, 2022 I crossed the start line in Hopkinton one more time.
I knew before ever getting off the bus in Athlete’s Village that this would be the year Boston and I finally settled the score. This was going to be the year that the failure of my first DNF and the determination to overcome my hip injury would carry me to a place I never thought I belonged. For 26.2 miles, I had one of the best days of my life. From the first downhill mile to the long climb up heartbreak hill, my legs and spirit were one. The high fives propelled me forward and the You Go Girl! fueled my fire. As spectators cheered for bib 6442, joy filled my soul. My family came into view at mile 22, and goosebumps and gratitude took over. With only a little over four miles left, I smiled at every person along the way, and said thank you with every passing mile. Finally, after years of work and heartbreak, I had my moment. Right on Herteford. Left on Boylston. The cheers from hundreds of screaming fans were deafening as the blue and yellow finish line came into view. Ten years. It had taken me ten years to get to this point. It was all coming to an end too fast, and I wanted this moment to last forever. But just like that, it was over. I covered 26.2 miles in 2:58:30, a pace of 6:49 per mile, a time that once felt impossible. Yes, that day I walked away with a PR, but more importantly, I walked away with a 10 year long journey that proved me I am unstoppable.
The gratitude that I feel for the 2022 Boston Marathon is overwhelming.
There have been a lot of hard things to happen, both mentally and physically, over the past 10 years, and there have been countless moments of doubt. After my hip surgery, a friend sent me a note that said “You’ve got what it takes. But it’s going to take everything you’ve got.” And it did. It took everything over the past 10 years to get me to that finish line, and the failures along the way, made everything about this past Marathon Monday a bit sweeter.
You too are unstoppable.
Always believe in yourself. Dream the biggest dreams you can and show up for yourself, every single day. Never let anyone tell you that you can’t do something, because you are infinitely capable of the impossible.
