I Heart NY

I made Sam get out of bed at 9:30 am this morning so that we could walk down to 4th Avenue to watch the marathon. Doesn't sound too exciting does it? Well, you'd be wrong. For some reason, I was really emotional this morning. Watching the wheelchair "runners" go by was amazing. I was so inspired to see visually impaired men and woman walking (and some running) the marathon. I was especially amazed by two participants - the man and woman who were participating in the marathon with two artificial legs. It kinda made me feel bad that I take my two legs for granted.

I never imagined what watching the marathon really meant. The motorcade, consisting of police suburbans, motorcycles, and a classic convertable containing Mayor Bloomberg, really made you feel like you were witnessing something important. Cheering on the front runners, who were at mile 8 after 34 minutes was exhilerating. About ten minutes later, when the throngs of runners came by, we knew why the marathon is such an important event in NYC. Thousands upon thousands of runners passed us, their bodies sweating and their muscles flexing, all for a common goal - completing a 26 mile run. It was interesting to see all of the countries and the age ranges represented. These people were doing something that I could never imagine doing and I was impressed.

We left the marathon route @ 11 am and headed for breakfast. Luckily we were able to watch the end of the marathon on TV at the cafe. Can you imagine completing a 26-mile run in just over 2 hours? Never gonna happen! But maybe we can continue our two mile walks on the weekend on a more consistent basis.

So, whether you're running a marathon, running a race, running for office, or running late - get out and run. Make something happen! Let's hope that I can take my own advice.