This year I was lucky enough be able to spend Mother’s Day with my mom. She lives in Montana and I don’t get to see her as often as I want. This year my mom, my sister Breanna and I ran the Montana Women’s Day 5 mile race. The morning was sunny but slightly chilly; we excitedly stood at the start line letting the sun warm us as we talked about our strategy for the race. When the gun went off, we filed through the starting gate with thousands other women, 8500 participated in the event. As with any mass start events, we started out elbow to elbow with complete strangers, then found our pace and our spot on the street. We stuck together even though we are all at different fitness levels and have unique paces. Breanna lead the way through the sea of women wearing their purple race shirts. Mom worked followed behind her focusing on her breathing. I was in my usual place at the end taking in the scenery and encouraging my mom when I saw her struggling a bit. We ran east first into the sun and past many of the industrial shops in Billings. My favorite part of the route included the tree shaded residential streets with large, beautiful homes.
Only once did we need to stop to catch our breath. The mile marker signs raised our spirits as each of their numbers increased. The three of us crossed the finish line together: happy, accomplished, and joyed to be together. We feasted on homemade cinnamon rolls that demanded a good cup of coffee. Tyler, Breanna’s husband, met us at the finish line and bought us a coffee. We sat at the small downtown coffee shop, watching the masses that started after we did cross the finish line. There were so many smiles. But the most important smile was the one shining from my heart; I spent the morning running with my family circled by their love and warmth. It’s one of those perfect moments that you cannot dream or plan or force…you just have to take them when they surface.
“I got to grow up with a mother who taught me to believe in me.” Antonio Villaraigosa
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