Run Bermuda! Run Happy! A Stirring in my Soul

Another week of training in the books on the road to Bermuda Marathon Weekend. Three months from today we will in Bermuda! Part of this feels so surreal because Tom and I had resigned ourselves to taking a break from Bermuda this year. I was going to take a longer break before training for another Half Marathon and we were exploring other race destinations. But as so often happens in my life, God stepped in and extended an invitational entry to Bermuda Marathon Weekend from the Race Director himself, Anthony Raynor. To seal the deal and talk about Bermuda Marathon Weekend, he and Clarence 'Stoker' Smith (who wooed us and won us over at the 2016 Finish at the 50 5K) came by for lunch this summer while they were in town:


The weeks are flying be and we (Team McManus) find ourselves in the rhythm of success as we set our sights on the finish line of the 2018 Bermuda Half Marathon.

Saturday we repeat one more double digit run - 10 miles - and then very slowly build mileage by .5 mile every other week until we reach 12.5 miles on December 16th. Then we go into taper mode. So far we have been blessed by the weather gods. This Saturday's forecast has changed from rain to cloudy and 71. We've learned to not change our long run day based on the weather because we need to mentally be ready for whatever the day brings; although I am imagining a perfect running weather day for Bermuda Marathon III.

I am continuing to focus on mental preparation along with the physical preparation of a five day a week training cycle. I remind myself that the normal sensations of training for 13.1 can be somewhat magnified for me given my history of paralytic polio and trauma but I also remind myself that I am healthy, whole and strong fully capable of going the distance.



I made a very significant change in my life back in July. As a follow up to this change and keeping everything aligned in my life, I cleaned out photos and disconnected from FB friends that were a part of my old role. I was making way for the new which is already flowing freely into my life!


Wonderful and wondrous connections are happening and the circle of like minded and like hearted friends is growing with the loving and tender hand of God weaving a wonderful tapestry for us all.

Through Keith Cartwright, who recently interviewed me for his podcast TwoTim47, I met Keri Jacobs on line. She is the co-founder of 22 Too Many. A powerful connection for me given that I worked for almost 20 years as a VA social worker.

22 Too Many is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that cares deeply and passionately about our nations military community. Through various events, we seek to serve as a living memorial, reduce the stigma by increasing public knowledge and awareness of PTS, share helpful resources, and provide support and comfort to the grieving families left behind.

It just so happens that she used to live in Bermuda and through a Facebook conversation stream, she shared that she will be running the Bermuda Triangle Challenge in January!

As my village grows and I was culling my Facebook photos, I felt a stirring in my soul!

I was taken back to special moments from Bermuda Marathon Weekends I and II.

The moment we put a name and number to Denise McMillan with whom we've remained friends through Facebook since January 2016:



Tom and I at the start of the race 2017:


A photo from TabFoto of Tom and me out on the course and this lovely photo with our dear friend Thomas Glave who we met in 2016 and who stayed at our Hotel in 2017. He told me how much I inspired him and we ran the beginning of the race together. He will return for his Bermuda Marathon Weekend III:


From Bermuda Marathon I - Tom captured these special moments at Mile 11 and Mile 13; Race Director Anthony Raynor took time out of his busy duties as R.D. to take the finish photo of us that I'd imagined in my mind's eye thousands of times during our training:


I got goosebumps all over again as I happened upon the photo of Jamie-Lee Wright, my angel at mile 12 in Bermuda II, helping me get to the finish, this photo of Tom and me coming into the finish line and our triumphant finisher photo after my brief stint in the medical tent:


My news feed is now being filled with stories of first time marathoners, inspirational journeys on the roads and in life and Keith's podcasts along with his blog and Patreon patrons only videos bring love, light and faith to my world.

Today and tomorrow are rest and recovery days from physical training and the perfect time to continue that all important mental and spiritual preparation as we get ready to toe the starting line on 1/14/18.

Just as I did before I wrote the poem "Running the Race," I feel a stirring in soul; a powerful connection to the Divine within and all around me. I am so excited for all the wonder and magic that continues to unfold in my life as I write these next chapters of my life.


To going the distance with strength and courage
From my heart to yours,
Mary

Be sure to listen to my interview with Keith Cartwright, "From Polio Survivor to Boston Marathon Finisher" by following this link.

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):

My Running Chronicles: Feeling My Edge

It was the first hot running day of the season. We went back to Wollaston Beach to get in our training run for the Finish at the 50 5K happening July 3rd at Gillette Stadium.

At the end of the Beach, there is a steep grade uphill. We could have opted to turn around before the halfway point of our run and go farther on the flat surface by the Beach but I suggested we tackle the hill. I started out walking the hill but then was feeling the need to run up the hill.

After tackling the hill and reaching the halfway point for our run, I spotted a walker who was walking at a brisk pace on the pavement along the beach in the distance who I wanted to pass. We increased our pace and as we got closer to her, I broke into a sprint and passed her. I took a water stop, caught my breath and then resumed our run at a fairly good pace. I was hot and nauseous. I dumped water on my head, hydrated and then slowed down the pace to make sure I didn't get sick but oh how I loved feeling that I'd gone right up to my edge. My overall time was one of my best since I returned to the roads in late March and I did negative splits.

I learned what not to do on race day especially if it's hot. I need to pace myself and not set out to sprint in the middle of the race and pass anyone. I'll leave it in the tank until we near the finish.

I also learned that I don't have to be afraid of pushing myself. I went into the ocean after the run and once again allowed the swirling cold waters of the Atlantic Ocean to dissolve scar tissue in my left leg and heal my knees. I felt One with all that is and a sense of peace and invincibility, strength and determination, deep gratitude and unbridled joy that once again I am pushing myself and feeling my edge.

We went to Marathon Sports on our way home to pick up the money from the sale of my memoir. One of the women working there asked me if I was Mary McManus and if I had participated in AccesSportAmerica last year. She had accompanied me on one of my bike rides in a recumbent bike around the Charlestown Navy Yard. I remembered her and we took a moment to get caught up. She asked me if I was back at Spaulding and the adaptive sports program this season.

I told her that I'm so grateful for the work we did together at Spaulding and AccesSport but I had to graduate myself from their programs. As long as I was in rehab and adaptive sports, I was not giving my body the messages for total and complete healing. I was still carrying my diagnosis of post polio syndrome and I was still being cautious in what I was allowing my body to do. While staff try to help patients feel "as normal as possible", in truth, I was still a patient and receiving the subtle and at times not so subtle message to be cautious. And the encouragement to take a risk was coming from the outside by a staff member rather than me being in tune and in sync with what I needed and wanted to do.

So now I'm on my own figuring things out garnering the wisdom from inside and from trainers, teachers and coaches. I see myself and feel myself as whole, healed and happy. I run unencumbered, fearless and feeling my edge enjoying every step of this journey.

Be blessed! Journey well! To all good things...

My latest book, "Journey Well" is now available on Amazon along with all of my inspirational books. 50% of book proceeds are donated to the Massachusetts Resiliency Center, a safe, welcoming space for survivors of the Boston Marathon bombing to heal and stay in touch with one another; a virtual hub for a widely dispersed community whose lives have been impacted by the tragic events of April 15th and the events that followed.

When terror struck the world's oldest and most beloved marathon on April 15, 2013, it was a defining moment in Mary McManus’ life and the lives of all those in Boston and around the world. It was her wake up call to return to the sport and community that have been medicine and a lifeline for her throughout her marathon of healing the late effects of paralytic polio and experiencing 9 years of domestic violence as a child and adolescent. Mary captures the essence of Boston Strong through her experience of the 2014 Boston Marathon and as she profiles the people who are Boston Stronger. Through her blog posts, poems and journal entries woven together with excerpts from her memoir, “Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing, Hope and Possibility,” you will experience, through one woman’s journey of transformation and healing, that no matter what happens to us, we can all learn to journey well.

Mind Games

Last night during my meditation before falling asleep I had this sharp pain go through my left leg. 'Oh no,' was my first thought, 'I'm injured again' and then I got still. I had a conversation with my body and allowed the flashback to polio and reconstructive leg surgery to flow. I've often experienced flashbacks to the pain of polio in my left leg and been able to ride its wave but in the wake of last December's knee injury, I panicked but only for a moment.

I remembered these two quotes:


I smiled. I breathed. I relaxed and I celebrated feeling deep gratitude for all that I do have. I reminded myself of the power of the healer within me and I told myself that the grip of fear came from the 5 year old within me whose body collapsed and stopped functioning with no warning; I allowed the memories from the reconstructive leg surgery for which I was awake using epidural spinal for anesthesia to flow. I told myself I'm safe and blessed by knowing my healer within, partnering with people who are healers in my life and feeling the love and support of my village whose love is powerful medicine. I played with imagery and visualization going to my favorite place the beach to allow the sun, the sand and the salt water to bathe me in healing waters. I saw my knee as healthy and used the laser vision of my 3rd eye to clear out the debris in the joint. I allowed the congested energy from the painful experiences of the past and residuals from polio, surgery and violence to wash through me imagining a lavage of light and love to clear the path in its wake. After I allowed the hot, searing pain to flow, I noticed that my left leg and actually both legs felt lighter and there was a sense of ease in my legs.

I also wondered why it's so easy to go to those mind games that involve fear, intimidation, or unworthiness and why we have to work so hard to flip on the switch of joy, strength, confidence, healing, hope, knowing all is well and allowing, as Thich Nhat Hahn says in this beautiful quote that appeared on my Facebook News Feed this morning, all good things to bloom:



It takes practice, practice, practice to be able to execute mind games that foster health, happiness, joy, gratitude, excitement and allow creativity and inspiration to flow.

Last night, rather than allowing the pain and fear to grip my body, mind, heart and soul, I played detective to find the source of the physical and emotional pain I experienced. I allowed my energy to flow by steadying my breath and calming my mind reminding myself to Trust and have Faith; that, to quote the healer Jack Gray, "I am a child of God. Everything I need to heal is inside of me. Healing this leg is no big problem."

Nor is healing all of the things that happened to me...but it takes practice, patience, persistence and pacing and figuring out what treatments, therapies, workouts best serve me at any given time. I choose where to put my energies and make sure that every choice I make is supporting healing, vibrancy, vitality and thriving in the wake of all that I experienced.

And it takes mind games to harness the power of all that is right and true and good within me - that delicious Divine Energy, pure love and light to support my body as it heals. I surround myself with like-hearted and like-minded people who can support the mind games I like to play and I make sure that I am the guardian and the gate keeper of positive, healthy, life affirming healing thoughts. I am reminded of a quote from Dave McGillvray, "My game. My rules." I get to play this hand that I've been dealt with finesse, success, joy, and exhilaration as I train for the 2016 Newport Marathon to raise money and awareness for the Arredondo Family Foundation.

Be blessed. Journey well. To all good things....

My latest book, "Journey Well" is now available on Amazon along with all of my inspirational books. 50% of book proceeds are donated to the Massachusetts Resiliency Center, a safe, welcoming space for survivors of the Boston Marathon bombing to heal and stay in touch with one another; a virtual hub for a widely dispersed community whose lives have been impacted by the tragic events of April 15th and the events that followed.

When terror struck the world's oldest and most beloved marathon on April 15, 2013, it was a defining moment in Mary McManus’ life and the lives of all those in Boston and around the world. It was her wake up call to return to the sport and community that have been medicine and a lifeline for her throughout her marathon of healing the late effects of paralytic polio and experiencing 9 years of domestic violence as a child and adolescent. Mary captures the essence of Boston Strong through her experience of the 2014 Boston Marathon and as she profiles the people who are Boston Stronger. Through her blog posts, poems and journal entries woven together with excerpts from her memoir, “Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing, Hope and Possibility,” you will experience, through one woman’s journey of transformation and healing, that no matter what happens to us, we can all learn to journey well.