Sun, 31st Oct '04, 7:05 pm::
So anyways, no success story can be complete without a pretty lady pulling the guy through. So the marathon story began when I was running my 16th mile. I passed by Angela stretching her leg due to what seemed like a bad cramp. I kept going on, well because I didn't know who she was. At the 20th mile stop, I suddenly felt like giving up because there was no way I was going to make it through to the 26th mile. That's when I saw Angela walking in front of me. She smiled and started talking to me. In an instant, I felt like I can pull through if I had a running partner.
We started talking and kept on going at a slow but steady pace. It took over two hours but we slowly made it upto the 26th mile. Just as we saw the finish line, we smiled at each other and made a dash for it. We crossed it just at the same time. We got our Finisher's Medals together and I gave her the biggest hug ever! If she hadn't been there to pull me through, I would've given up at the 20th mile. Moreover, she was moving at a very good speed and just because I kept up with her, I barely made it to the finishing line 3 minutes before the marathon ended! Without her, I wouldn't have been this happy right now.
And just like that, the marathon ended and I guess so did our friendship. I walked back to where my family was waiting for me and she went the other way to find her brother. I can't believe how randomly someone can come into your life for just a few hours and turn it around forever. Angela, I will forever thank you for the rest of my life for helping me make it past one of the biggest hurdles I've ever faced in my life. And maybe if I'm ever in Dallas, I'll check up on you and see how you've been doing. Till then, have a great life.
Running a MarathonSun, 31st Oct '04, 6:20 pm::
I RAN THE DC MARINE CORPS MARATHON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OH MY GOD I AM SOOO HAPPY! And best of all our whole Team (my cousin Sagar, my cousin Purvi's fianceee Allen, and myself) completed it :) In case you want to see how I did, here is my timing.
Our team name was: For Keval. I am so happy because every minute that I ran, I was praying for Keval's speedy recovery. If you haven't been following my 'blog, he got into a motorcycle accident in January '04 and has been in coma ever since. We are all still hoping he wakes up some day!
I don't think I have ever been this tired in my entire life. 26.2 miles (42 kms) is a LONG way! Anyways, tonight is time for celebration. So some pizza and drinks follow. I will have to go to bed soon too because my flight is tomorrow at 8:55am.