How I Think I Look When I Run

This is pretty much me:

I know some people find fulfillment and enjoyment in running, but for me, it’s agony! Believe me—I’ve tried. My goal was to win against that quick student in my class…only to be easily outrun by a sprite young six year old! Or that 5K I excitedly signed up for, only to breathlessly reach the one kilometer marker and think with sheer horror that “I have to do 4 more of these???”

Nope, running is not my forté. It is not a strength of mine. It makes me look ridiculous! I get sore. I get grumpy. I get tired. But I still do it—ONCE a YEAR! And here is why:

Because I run for water.

I run for hope.

I haven’t bought into the enjoyment and the feelings of accomplishment that one might get out of running, but I have bought into the story of hope I can give a child, and as a result, a community.

Run 4 Water is a non-profit society that puts on a race event that includes a 5K fun run and family activities. It helps HOPE International Development Agency in raising money to provide clean water to thousands of children and their communities in southern Ethiopia. Raising $35 gives one child clean water for life. This means a child will not get sick with E. coli, salmonella, cholera or hepatitis, and it means that a child will get to go to school because clean, running water is available in their village. No more dangerous 10K walks carrying 25L or more back…just hope for a positive future.

I also get to teach the students at our school the value of showing love and compassion to children they don’t know. I get to teach them just how much God has blessed us with running water, health care, and the chance to do homework. I get to go and have fun on a weekend with the children in this school community.

So, while you will never see my name on the marathon list or see me dashing through town in the latest Asics or Nike shoes, you will see me at Mill Lake on Sunday, May 25, because I will go through the agony of running if it means that a child will live, a community will be blessed, and I can have the privilege of sharing in that!