I’ve always been a good runner but for the longest time I’ve told myself that I hate it. When I was little, since I was about two, my dad always took me on runs and I would throw the biggest tantrums. I was just so stubborn. In the middle of a run I would just melt and cry on the ground and tell my dad, “I’m going back and I’m not running the rest of the way.” He would always encourage me by saying, “You could run all the way to Disney World.” I loved Disney World, so it was actually motivational. But still, I continued to resist running… we went running anyway. So every summer we’ve gone on runs. Surprisingly, a few summers ago I realized that I love to sprint. So during that summer when we went on runs I would always want to do a quick sprint or a race… not a jog. Over the past few summers, I got really good at sprinting. Even as I improved at running, I still thought that I hated it.
On one of the last days of school this year, we had a field day and there were a few running stations. I got to go to all of them. My favorite one was either pole vaulting or sprinting, probably because I was good at both.
The things I really enjoyed about pole vaulting was that it was a short fast sprint to get up enough speed to catapult myself over the bar. And then it felt like I was flying when I was in the air. It was exhilarating!
The next event was running and, like I said, I thought I hated running. It wasn’t really a race, but I was at the front of the group and ended up as the third person to the stopping point. Somebody told me, “Good job pacing your breathing. That’s probably why you were in the front.” 😮💨. I didn’t notice that I was pacing my breathing, but what she saw helped me see one of my hidden talents. That’s when I kind of decided that I don’t hate running and that I actually enjoy it.
Next there was a running relay where we had to pass the baton to the next person on the team while sprinting across the track. We came in second the first time we did it… we were one second behind the boys. We did it again and we won. My team won out of everybody in sixth grade. So after we did the the relay I was very tired a I told my friend, “I hope we don’t have another running thing soon.”
But of course… the next thing was sprinting. I won all the races except the last one. The two people I was racing were twin sisters who I’ve known forever, and they are very competitive. I was tired and I didn’t want to run anymore. Knowing the twins would continue to challenge me and make me redo the race, I slowed down at the end. And the twins redid the sprint race five more times. I was happy because I didn’t have to. 🤩
Now, when I think of “running to Disney World”, I believe I have the energy to keep going: go harder, go longer, go further, go faster than I ever thought I could. In the end, I learned that I do not hate running at all. I actually love it, but my favorite thing to do is sprint.
