Now I know what they mean when they say "Love/Hate Relationship"

I did it. I finished the Half-Marathon. And I wasn't last!! There were over a thousand people who finished after me. There were about three thousand that finished before me, but who cares?! I did it. And it felt great. Well actually it felt awful and then if felt great. Do you know how far 13.1 miles is when you are running? And the hills. My God the hills. Why didn't they ever go down?! Always with the up. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Here's how it all began...

I set my alarm for 5:30am Saturday morning, but by 3:15am I was wide awake and stretching. I couldn't sleep. I slowly warmed up my muscles with light Pilates as the house slept around me. I watched Love & Basketball for the millionth time, took my ibuprofen and drank water as the minutes ticked by. At 6:15 I got in the car and began the short drive to Baltimore. The sun was just coming up. Traffic backed up the closer I got to Ravens stadium. I found parking easily and turned up the heat in the car as I laced up my shoes and attached my D-Tag to the laces (it's a small orange band that keeps your time during the race).

The 1/2 mile walk to the event was chilly. About 50 degrees, but the sun was out and shining. I made my way over to Celebration Village and was immediately swallowed up by the other 17,499 runners. There's no way to describe it. Electric I guess. Everyone is ready to just get it over with. But at the same time, you don't want to start. I walked around for about an hour, warming up and stretching,drinking water and eating a banana. I went to bag check and dropped off my things and started to walk to the starting line.

I loved the anonymity. There were thousands of people around but I was just one in the crowd as we all walked together toward the start of the race.

Before I knew it, we were off and running. I clicked on my watch and told my feet to just keep going. The crowd ebbed and flowed as the fastest runners edged ahead and the walkers brought up the rear. The first mile was the most difficult, silly, I know. But it's such a mental game. Before I knew it, I saw mile marker 6, then, 8 and when I saw 11 I knew I was going to finish.

Along the way, people lined the streets. Some had music playing, or maracas or they were just yelling out encouraging words. I hope they know how much they helped.

As I crossed the finish line, knee aching, blisters already formed, I knew that this marathon was more than just running. It was, as my running buddy and co-worker so eloquently put it, "A metaphor for life. Whatever happens you just have to keep going. Don't quit. Don't stop. Just keep moving. No matter what obstacle gets in your way, all you have to do is just keep going." And I guess in the end, it really is that simple. Not easy. But simple.

The medal I got is sitting under my College diploma. When I look over to that corner of my room I am proud of myself, and the things that I have pushed myself to do and continue to push myself to do.

And now? Well now I'm hooked. I've already signed up for my next race- May 3rd in Frederick. And I'm takin' Sunshine with me.

"The indispensable first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: decide what you want."
-Ben Stein