. . . which brings me to Friday, May 11th, 2012, sitting in the Philadelphia airport, fresh (minus the security mishaps) off a plane from Tel Aviv, Israel, after a restful (? . . . okay, not really) week there, on Massanutten Mountain Trail 100-Mile Run Eve. I think it's fair to call it some sort of holiday (or day of memorial, at least), in the vein of the fire-setting memorial currently going on in Israel, that has something to do with defeating the Romans a long time ago (go ahead, ask somebody in Israel, and see if you can get a better answer than that).
As hard as it is to believe, this will be my fourth straight year at MMT - two years as a pacer, last year as a runner, and this year, as a runner again. I'll be looking to halt the slow-sliding disaster that has been the last month of running (and, more generally, my life). And although MMT is arguably one of the hardest 100-mile courses in the world, and always comes around at a time in my year that's traditionally been a "low point," I can't think of a better event for putting things on the line again and turning things around. Because if the last few weeks have taught me anything, it's that I can deal with a lot more than I had ever imagined could happen, and life will go on. And when I think about running MMT, oddly enough, I can picture the course clearly in my mind . . . which doesn't make it easier, but sure makes the pain a lot more familiar (and manageable) than what I've been through recently.
Or so it seems at the moment. Who knows, a couple days from now, I could be singing a very different tune. But for now, all I know is that I have a lot of good people supporting me in this effort, and a lot of rocks to climb, and I'm thankful and excited for this opportunity.
And on a somewhat-related topic, Badwater isn't too far away, so if you feel so inclined, and would like to make a donation to my charity, the Challenged Athletes Foundation, in recognition of whatever amusement or enlightenment my adventures have provided you, feel free to do so at this link:
http://adventurecorps2012.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=1013684&supid=331202845
And now, I'm off to make some more things happen. :)
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