And then it happened... it was like a light bulb of reality hit me.. actually slammed me...
I DO BELONG IN BOSTON....!!
Not only did I work damn hard to get a qualifying time... I need to continue to be an example for women to understand and reiterate how important it is for women to be there! To make sure that our daughters, and granddaughters understand that 50 years ago we were told we could not run this distance.. and that we could not run this race!
CRAZY.. if you think about it.. we were literally told NO we were NOT allowed to run this distance because we couldn't... seriously crazy.
I happened upon a fantastically inspiring article about Roberta "Bobbi" Gibb... she was the first women to run Boston (unofficially)..
50 years ago this year on Marathon Monday 1966, Roberta “Bobbi” Gibb crouched in the bushes in Hopkinton, her body concealed by Bermuda shorts and a hooded sweatshirt, ready to make history. When the pack began to run, she leapt out to join. Three hours, 21 minutes, and 40 seconds later, she became the first woman to finish the Boston Marathon—even though, at that time, women weren’t allowed to register for the race. (from this great article: Boston Magazine Article)
When asked why she ran it.. she said, "Women have been deprived of opportunities for centuries and centuries. I wanted to change that. When I ran, I felt free and I felt full of life. People thought I was nuts—nice, but nuts. I wrote my application [to the marathon], and [the Boston Athletic Association] wrote back, ‘Women are not physiologically able to run marathons.’" (Boston Magazine Article)
Everyone has self doubts... I doubted that I belonged...because I felt that maybe I wasn't good enough... but I am good enough.. and d-mn it I will run.... because people like Bobbi paved the path for women like me to be able to live out their dreams.
Sometimes it takes that light bulb of reality... to TRUST your BELIEF...
