It’s a Marathon Not a Sprint

My friend with zero athletic capability told me in September that she had decided to run the New York City marathon. Okay-Maybe that’s not fair. My friend with minimal athletic capability decided to run a marathon. Don’t get me wrong. This girl looks amazing in a leotard, but running in one?  I had my doubts. 

I’m a therapist. I believe in change. It’s what I preach. I’d be in the wrong field if I didn’t believe in humanities desire to achieve greatness. So the fact that I was in a state of utter shock was a wake up call.  In my defense, I wasn’t the only one. Someone actually accused her of getting spammed when she requested donations for the cause. I donated and I meditated. 

My preconceived ideas of who she was in the past, clouded my ability to see who she is and what she could become. Anyone can change. Anyone can say ENOUGH. But what causes someone to decide to change? To go outside of their comfort zone and do something different? There is no one answer to this. I for one, just get sick of myself, I get tired of complaining and doing the same thing over and over again.  Some look to others for inspiration and motivation.  Some look to a higher power.  Everyone has a tipping point. If you are looking for yours, when you are  feeling stuck, ask yourself:  What is my motivation? What are my values? What values am I honoring and what values am I neglecting? What is possible?  What do I want to change? What barriers am I creating or imagining that get in the way of meeting my goals? 

If you are thinking to yourself, “No way am I going to run a marathon,” you are in good company. I feel the same way. But I can walk for 10 minutes....okay maybe 20. Maybe a walk/run? I don’t have to the. No, I am not going to run a marathon… today.... but my friend wasn’t going to run one four months ago and now she has completed the NYC marathon.  She took little steps toward her bigger goal and made a little progress everyday. Change doesn’t happen overnight. It’s little baby step. It’s not a sprint to change, is slow going. We have to be patient with ourselves, gentle in our judgements, and be mindful of the progress we are making so we hold on to our victories and let go of our set backs. 

Let’s stop thinking about what isn’t possible and start thinking about what is, and while we’re at it, let’s open our eyes to embrace the change in others and support them on their journey or in this case- marathon.