As we boarded Delta Flight 561 from Boston to Bermuda there was one question being asked up and down the aisles, "You running?" "She's runnin'," Ken McMillan said pointing to his wife in the row behind us. "I'm just support crew." "A very important role to play," I affirmed. Denise was running her last race before turning 55 and celebrating her upcoming birthday at the Bermuda Marathon Weekend 2016.
The excitement filled the cabin as we readied for takeoff.
We learned that Denise and Ken traveled to Boston from Kentucky to get their flight to Bermuda.
During one of our leisurely strolls along Front Street in Bermuda, we "bumped" into Ken and Denise. We exchanged pleasantries and went on our ways.
As I sat reading Bermuda's newspaper, the Royal Gazette, I saw the special section about the Bermuda Marathon Weekend. I snapped these photos and posted on Facebook:
I didn't think anymore about the post.
From "Going the Distance: The Power of Endurance":
We woke up at 5:45am on race day. The Rosedon Hotel, our home away from home, had a continental breakfast starting at 6:30. They usually don't serve breakfast until 7:00 but as happened throughout the weekend, everything we needed was set before us. There was wonderful energy in the main house as runners were getting ready to walk down to the starting line. This was our first international race and our first destination race yet one that we had imagined over and over and over again while we trained. We saw the sunrise over Hamilton Harbor and felt the excitement of race day! I was feeling serious pre-race jitters feeling like I might throw up before the race. We rushed our breakfast because we were in a hurry to get to the starting line. I took a lot of deep breaths and engaged in positive self talk as Tom and I walked around taking pictures of this miraculous moment.
"Hey there. I was determined to find you this morning. What are the chances that we would have our bib numbers in sequence?"...
"I was on Instagram and looked for the hashtag #runbermuda. I saw the pictures you posted."
"What? I deactivated my Instagram account yesterday because I was frustrated and couldn't figure out how to use it."
"Your Instagram account is linked to Facebook so what you posted there automatically went to Instagram," Tom explained to me.
"So I saw your photos and I found out about you and I said prayers for your health last night and wished you a wonderful run but I was determined to find you this morning."
A sign from God that I could relax and let go knowing that my body knew exactly what to do to run 13.1 miles.
Denise had Ken snap this photo:
This is what Denise posted on Facebook with the photo:
This couple sat with us on the plane to Boston, then I discovered our bib numbers were sequential, then we ran into them Friday night. Mary McManus has overcome so much to be at this starting line. I was determined to find her and wish her well the morning of the race, she had been in my thoughts and prayers the night before. I'm so glad I found them and that they are now in my world.
The story does not end there....Denise happened to bump into Lashell Head on a beach in Bermuda. They became fast friends through Megsmiles. I connected with Lashell on Facebook through Denise. I also connected with Melissa Platt through Megsmiles and found out that she was connected to my dear runner friend in Cyberspace Nicole Berglund. Nicole ran the Houston Marathon (her first) on the day of my comeback race in Bermuda.
Fast forward to today and the inspiration for sharing this flashback Friday treasured memory.
There was a Facebook stream by Robert Keith Cartwright aka Keith Cartwright. Lashell shared a recent blog post of mine with Keith suggesting I might be a good guest on his podcast, twotim47.
Keith is running a half marathon on Sunday to help support the Hurricane Harvey relief efforts of St. Andrews Church. His podcast shares stories of runners with the intention that:
Life is like running. How? Tune into the podcast and find out.
I pray this podcast brings you courage to fight the fights you think you can't win.
I pray it encourages you to fight the good fight, to finish your race, and to keep the faith.
And, maybe help someone else do the same along the way.
From Delta Flight 561 from Boston to Bermuda in 2016, we arrive in this moment.
And so the village continues to grow and grow as we all bear witness to the wonder and awe of God....running together...sharing stories and doing good in the world through our common humanity and shared faith.
Go the distance with strength and courage,
Mary
Be sure to visit my website by following this link.
My books are available on Amazon.
Feel the Heal: An Anthology of Poems to Heal Your Life
Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing Hope and Possibility that chronicles the first 7 years of my healing journey:
And my latest and greatest book - Going the Distance: The Power of Endurance (With a Foreword by Jacqueline Hansen):
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