Do the things important to you
About a year ago, my mom, brother and I crossed the finish line of the St. George Marathon, one of us with a broken foot.
My mom, who was running her 10th marathon, had been training all summer and unknowingly got a stress fracture two weeks before the race. Not wanting to miss out on running after all her hard work, she decided to race anyway, not understanding why her foot was hurting so bad.
By the end of the 26 miles, little did she know two phalanges were broken and she would be on her way to a long recovery. She would be casted for several weeks and then would move on to a walking boot without the bones fully healed.
Her doctor found out within the first couple months that she had the beginning stages of osteoporosis and allowed her to attach a bone stimulator to her hip, which sent shocks to the phalanges to promote healing. It wouldn’t be until about six months later that her supposed 6-week recovery would finally be over and she could walk without her foot hurting and swelling.
I don’t know how she ever crossed the finish line of that marathon. If she had known how hard it was going to be to simply walk, she may not have even started the race. Throughout the past 12 months, I’ve thought about her experience off and on and have realized that finishing is what life is all about, no matter how hard it is.
There is no other feeling quite like finishing a marathon. You run until you feel like you could die and then you keep on going. When you come around that last corner and you can see the arch of balloons and a cheering crowd, you know it was all worth it. All the shin splints, blisters and sore muscles you experienced over the months of training don’t matter anymore. You’re done. You made it. You’re still alive. By the end of 26 miles, somehow you’re actually more alive.
The funny thing about marathons is that 99 percent of those who run them know they are not going to win anything. They know they aren’t going to get a trophy or be on the news for breaking a record. Many of them know they will never qualify for Boston. They run to prove to themselves they can.
There are so many things we can do if we challenge ourselves. Life is too short to not be excited about it. At times we are going to participate in things that stretch us, but if we continue to push, we will eventually receive the things we want.
When my best friend and I were 19, she moved to New York City to be a nanny. She had only been there one other time with her mom the year before. She didn’t know anyone and wasn’t sure what she would find there. Some of her other friends doubted she would make it in the big city, alone and so far from home and familiarity.
She recently told me that first year she was out there was one of the hardest times of her life. She cried nearly every night. But she wanted to be there and had to wait it out to see what could happen.
She recently started school and now plans to become an actress. She has everything she could ever want just a train ride away. Her school is located near Juliard, Central Park and Broadway. In a few years, she may be singing on the stages of New York.
As college students, we have so much to look forward to. We have so much life ahead of us. There will always going be a number of things that stand in our way. We may get our hearts broken. We may not see the end of the road. Frankly, when we cross our finish lines, we may lose.
A lot of us worry about money, where we should live, what major we should choose. The list of worries may never end, but the more you work toward your dream, the more you have the chance of it coming true.
I’m not saying you shouldn’t be careful. My mom probably shouldn’t have been running when her foot hurt like it did. Take breaks if you have to. Make sure you are on the right course. But also take risks. Find some sort of courage and motivation inside you that will push you as far as you think you can go and even farther to where you really can end up.
Do the things important to you. Find out what makes you happy and what will keep you going. We are all capable of something. The key is to keep moving. Keep running. Keep looking for that arch of balloons and the cheering crowd. It may just be right around the corner.
Manette Newbold is a senior majoring in print journalism. Comments and questions can be sent to manette.n@aggiemail.usu.edu.