The Miracle Run

It was another first for me last Sunday. I registered for the Men’s Health Miracle Run and ran the 10K. This was my first official 10K race. Excited and anticipating a good race ahead, I woke up at 4:00 am. I drank a cup of coffee and ate a banana for my breakfast, and we were ready to go. My wife and I arrived at the Global City at around 5:00 am. I was starting my warm-up when I saw Erlito ( HS classmates, also running) and his friend. After a few minutes of warm up and stretching I was ready to toe the line.

All the runners were called to the starting area. I heard from the announcer that we will start at 6:40am to give way for the on-site registrants. The organizers gave a short speech, then the countdown begun. 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1…. And up we went!

I was set to run a 5K pace at 7.5 min/k. I felt confident that I can finish the run and beat my time during my simulation run (1:19:00). It was a good first round for me. There were enough water in every water station. Gatorade, which was one of the sponsors, were also available for the runners. One thing I noticed, runners don’t mind throwing bottles of Gatorades which they don’t even consumed half of it. For me it was a waste of money. Maybe next time sponsors like them should think of having smaller containers. What I did was I brought along with me the bottle I took from the first water station. It took me 36+ min for my first round (5K).

On my second round, the sun was already up and I felt the heat on my face and nape. It was a good thing I have the bottle of Gatorade and need not wait for water stations for my re-hydration needs. As georgieboy had instructed me, I should be able to run comfortably on the second round. Since I already knew the course, I can determine where to give it a push and where to slowdown. I reached the finish line at 1:12:57 (unofficial - from my sports watch). I was really happy to have run this race. As the slogan goes – “I made a difference”. I was also very thankful of having a supportive wife who’s always there for me. We were also glad to meet “Run for Change’s Eric, the Passion Runner.

After the race, swthrt and I went to Kopi Rotti at Katipunan Ave. to have a cup of coffee, toasted bread with butter, and coffee bun. It was a wonderful day! Praise God!

My insights today was not actually about the race I just joined. It was about the race of life. After the race last Sunday, we went to Bulacan to attend on the interment of my uncle who died from various complications due to diabetes. Maybe this is one race that nobody wants to be first, but everyone was in it including me. Just like in any race, we train hard to prepare for it, to be able to finish the race. We eat the right food to give us energy. We practice the course to be familiar with it. We even train on hills to overcome courses like it. But for our spiritual race, how much have we trained? Are we ready to reach the finish line and say, I have ran a good race? Are we eating the right spiritual food for our souls? Are we familiar with the voice of our great coach in life, Jesus Christ, that while living in this life we trust and obey Him? Have we learned the lessons of the different hills we encountered in our life and be victorious over it? It will not be an easy race but God has given us His word through the bible. He gave us time to meet and worship Him. And He gave us lessons in life to make us better, victorious Christians. God bless us all!