on the iPod: "overkill" -- colin hay
I have my fair share of undesirable characteristics: I tend to procrastinate, I care a little bit too much about my outward appearance, I will deliberately drive slow in the interstate to piss off tailgaters, I drink milk straight from the carton, and I couldn't save money if my life depended on it. But I'm getting better about the last one.
Having said that, there's some cool things about me, too: I've got pretty much every type of music imaginable in my iTunes library and listen to them all frequently, I like to mow yards and will mow your's if it needs it, I regularly support the Episcopal church financially, I make exceptional chicken salad sandwiches, i've got salt and pepper hair, and i'm not competitive. Nope. Not at all. I'm not driven by the need to win, whether it's test scores or gross income or Words With Friends or any sort of status. That's not to say that I don't want to give 100% in all that I do, but I simply don't have to be the best. Running is no different.
So when my BHS colleague and Cross Country coach Mike Power asked if I was running in the Tiger Pride 5K, the answer was an immediate "of course". There was really no deliberation: lacing up for a race and, at the same time, supporting high school running? Um, yeah. Definitely. But I instantaneously realized that running this 5K would mean that pretty much the entire track and field program, boys and girls, would be there running, too. And, not being competitive, this wasn't a problem, except for the fact that it meant they would be running sub-six minute miles while I labored away with the nine minute milers in the back of the pack. Immediately I began to process the shame and embarrassment that would accompany my finishing time, ultimately deciding that I just had to finish strong and hope for the best. In a final act of desperation, I considered changing my registration to an alias: Skeeter Cantrell, Thurston Morehouse, Albert McClintock, or something equally as ridiculous. But, alas, I swallowed my pride and stayed the course. Mr. Puckett it would be. Damnit.
I needed to get in a full 13, so I got to the race start early and went out through the streets of Bentonville for a 10 mile warmup. The town was still sleepy and quiet as I ran solo through downtown, Memorial Park, and Crystal Bridges. Morning runs are probably my favorite part of the week, because they afford me time to think forward and reflect back, and I almost always end up in a place of catharsis. It's my own way to understand a higher power, which may sound hoaky, but it's the truth. When there's no one around and I can focus on my heart beating and labored breath, when my legs move effortlessly and each footstrike is with power and direction, when the sun is low in the eastern horizon and there's open expanse ahead, those are the times that I feel closest to God. It is where I'm supposed to be. Sometimes it's overwhelming.
Arriving back with a few minutes to spare before the gun, the BHS track complex was throwing a full-on running party. It was great to see a ton of fellow teachers out enjoying the morning and ready to run. Some of my best good teaching friends were there: Todd Boddie, Jennifer Power, Trish Dewitt, Jaclyn Evans, Joe Blair, Jodie Fields, and Doug Hanson. Trish and Jaclyn were laughing as usual and demanded a hug even though I was already covered in sweat. As evidenced by the picture below, on this particular morning they were both in fine form. They are Hot Mess Number One and Hot Mess Number Two, but I can't exactly say which is which.
But more than any of the others, it was so especially great to see Mrs. Pugh, my original running partner and marvelous friend. She's been away from running for quite some time, focusing on family and teaching and taekwondo, amongst a million other things, but she rolled out for this 5K with no training whatsoever. Bless her heart, she's been Supermom all summer and dragged along her two boys to do the one-mile fun run. She and I are thick as thieves and I can't imagine not having her around BHS. It simply wouldn't be the same. I told her she had to finish her coffee before we ran.
As I surmised, when the gun went off the entire BHS cross country team, some 40 students strong, left me in the dust and never looked back. I got schooled. I didn't know how my legs would respond after already going 10 miles, but they didn't seem to be in shock as we headed out through the expansive swath of ball fields known as the Tiger Athletic Complex. I quickly separated myself from the pack, lagging back a bit and finding a rhythm that seemed to work, and thinking about the school year that starts bright and early tomorrow morning. The first day of school is always a whirlwind. Students are nervous and teachers try to put their best foot forward for the parents in attendance. Schedule changes, bell snafus, long lunch lines, and parking lot blow-ups are par for the course, but somehow it all comes together to kick off what will hopefully be a year of beautiful exchanges and lessons: those of academic and life all at the same time. That's my hope, at least.
By the time I crossed the finish line in a little bit under 26:00, the students had finished much earlier and were lazily gathered in the infield of the stadium, most likely swapping stories about summer break and classes they are taking this year. Or maybe they were talking about going to the lake, or renting movies, or eating fro yo. Or how much their parents annoy them. Regardless, it was evident that they didn't give a rip about watching their teachers, including myself, finish the race much further behind them. It simply wasn't on their radar. I was still ashamed however, but quickly got over it.
The focus these next few weeks will be on the new school year and all that brings with it: learning the routine again, meeting new students, getting my bluff in on discipline (this is paramount since i'm a total pushover), answering helicopter parent emails, and going to staff development meetings. And throughout it all, copious amounts of coffee will be consumed to keep up with the pace. But the New York City Marathon will never be far from my mind. There's been a few times this past week when I've thought about it and gotten a knot in my stomach, but at the same time it's extremely exciting. Travel plans are coming together and training is heating up. As always, I couldn't be happier to be right in the middle of it.
Run.
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