It’s my mom’s birthday month.  My last post was about Mother’s Day, but I really didn’t talk about my own mother.  I was thinking about a piece of my life today that my mom really affected.  It’s often natural for mothers to “be there,” but she definitely taught me a little something about support!

My mom is great.  Most of the time, though, she is in her own world.  It’s not right or wrong–I love that about her, and I don’t love that about her, if that makes any sense.  When we have family get-togethers, my mom is content wandering outside by herself to enjoy the outdoors, feel the breeze, look at her flowers, and pet her horse.  She does not confine herself to what everyone else is doing.  When she finds herself in town, she isn’t trying to meet up for lunch or go shopping or hang out for the evening.  When I reach milestones, she usually is fine to hear about them on the phone.

A few years ago, I decided to do a mud run.  It was crazy.  I didn’t have a team, didn’t know anyone doing it, but I wanted so much to complete it and enjoy the experience.  So I signed up & went.  I ran it alone.  When I reached obstacles, I climbed them or attempted them by myself.  There was no one to give me a boost, no one to grab my hand and pull me up, and no one to cheer me on.  I loved the challenge, but it was a lonely experience at the same time and I vowed to never sign up for something like that again unless I had a partner!

Fast forward to my first 10K.  I had been training for this event for weeks, overcoming some setbacks.  I’m determined.  (Let me be totally real here: I said I had been training for weeks, but honestly, I don’t consider myself a runner.  I get bored.  I love the physical challenge, but the best exercise is the one you enjoy and will do!  While I want to be a runner, it’s just not me, not naturally, anyway.  My training consisted of doing maybe 5 miles on a treadmill to some serious jams, feeling like once I got out there on the field, 6-ish miles would probably be a breeze.)

It was a breeze.  That is, there was a breeze.  Like, 40-degree weather, cold wind and some rain blowing in your face and making your eyes water and muscles freeze kind of breeze.  It was tough.  The girl I had been running alongside had long since left me.  I wanted to walk.  But I didn’t sign up to walk.  I was there to run.  So I never stopped.  I ached.  My bones were cold and I ached.  Any desire to someday run a marathon left me in that hour.  For some odd reason, that desire is returning–I don’t understand that, but it’s ok.

As I neared the end of the course, I saw a couple of familiar faces.  Some people I work with who had completed the early 5K still lingered and held their hands out to encourage and high-five (or side-five) those of us coming through.  It’s interesting how just that can do so much for motivation.  Even strangers cheering for other people gave me a big push.  I’m sure it’s like that for others, too, but experiencing it is really something sweet.

The tail-end of the course winds you into the university stadium, around the track, and across the football field to the finish line.  As I came up the small hill (it felt big at the time) getting ready to enter the stadium, there was my mom!  My mom!! How did she know where to wait for me?  How long had she been waiting for me in the bitter cold?  How did she know that I hadn’t already been through there?  There were only a few of us staggering in at that point, so why hadn’t she given up on me?  But there she was, and I don’t remember what we said to each other or if I hugged her or not.  I don’t think I did, because I wasn’t stopping or I might not get going again.

Crossing the finish line was awesome.  Mom had made her way there, and hugged me all the way across the field.  She kept saying how proud she was of me.  I was proud of me.  Envisioning a goal and completing it is euphoric.  I was proud of her, too, for making it there.  My heart was full.

I know there have been many more times that my mom has been there, but this one stands out to me.  It was special.  It reminds me that when I feel like she’s in her own world, we’re still in the same world.  I hope my own kids will remember times similar to this when they think of me.

Be there for someone today.  It doesn’t have to be your kid or your mom or even someone you know.  Complete strangers encouraged me to keep going when I ran.  You can show support to others that they’ll never forget.  Life is now.  People need you.