A Decade of Running

 The next tab on my screen is playing the live stream coverage of the Chicago Marathon.  A young lady is singing a beautiful rendition of the National Anthem...although her youth is showing on some of the stronger notes that she doesn't quite master.  Whatever.  It is marathon day!  

The Chicago Marathon holds a dear place in my heart, as it was my first.  As the wheelchair athletes prepare for launch, I cannot help but look back a decade ago now, and reminisce about how running has changed my life.  

I remember training hard with my friend, James.  I originally just wanted to start getting into a little better shape, as I hadn't really run much since college.  I saw James (then my new neighbor on the other side of the wall at our town home) getting ready for a run and he told me sure, but he was starting to run three miles to train for the Chicago Marathon.  I didn't really know much about it, but just wanted to run, so I said I'd hang for as long as I could.  

We stuck to a Nike running training plan that James had found and downloaded.  Each run was tracked by James' phone.  We would eventually find great agony in waiting for the robotic running coach on his app to tell us that we had reached our goal for the day.  We ran every possible combination route throughout and around our subdivision over those three months.  Either early morning or evening running...we made almost all of our runs, with a few exceptions of bad weather and the near formation of a tornado in the cornfield next to where we were running.  

At some point, I was motivated to run a marathon, and bought a bib to a small marathon being held on the same day as the Chicago Marathon.  (It was too late to register for Chicago with James)  This really gave us a sense of excitement and additional motivation as the mileage increased to levels neither of us ever thought possible.  10...12...14....12...14...16..18..16...20 the miles of each long run increased then backed off in a staggered schedule which attempts to let legs "recover" by dropping mileage every other week before "blocking" up.  We ran our twenty miler training run along Lake Michigan in downtown Chicago.  The run is called the "Ready to Run" 20-miler, and is used by CARA (Chicago Area Runners Association) as the final training run before tapering and then the marathon.  The run is set-up to mimic major portions of the actual Chicago Marathon in terms of support stations and practicing pacing.  

Later that week, James told me that he had a friend who injured his ankle and needed to get rid of his bib for Chicago.  I had mixed emotions about buying a bib and running as someone else...but how could I pass on the opportunity to run with James and have Chicago be my first?!?!  

The marathon was amazing.  The people of Chicago showed-up in aces!  The energy was electric and infectious.  Running with 45,000 other athletes made me feel like part of a river and pushed me through to the end.  James and I were almost immediately separated so we really needed to rely on our training as individual runners.  It was hard but finishing really opened my mind to what I was capable of in terms of pushing my body to achieve.

Since Chicago, I have run several other marathons including New York!  Running gives me purpose.  Races are a reason to travel.  Running allows me to think and solve problems and reflect on life.  Running has changed my life expectancy.  Running has brought my family together.  I feel like the best version of myself when I am running.

10 years since my first marathon.  

Relentless Forward Motion

-a  

Falling Up

 A reset of sorts has happened for me.  Between summer in Alaska and starting a new school year, there seems to be some new spark of life ignited within me as of late.  This blog has been on my mind all summer, and now into the start of fall.  It has been a difficult internal road for me to navigate, working through my mother's death and dealing with my anger and anxiety.  Fortunately, Kim and my children, as well as my friends and family, have really helped me turn around and work towards becoming a better person and comforting me along the way.  

Some things that I have learned a little more about along this darker path:

1)  It is OK to be not OK...as long as you understand that you're not OK.  I have struggled with allowing others to help me and let myself open to show the hurt.  I still have people in my life that are so important to me, but I have shut them out because I feel as if I will let them down because I cannot be the person I want to be in their eyes.  I need to do better at opening myself back-up.

2)  Life is short.  A cliche, I know.  But damn if it's not the truth of truths.  I see the cycle of living and aging now, with a new perspective.  I am not a child....but not a senior, either.  I can see birth and death equally from my vantage in life, and understand more about the time I have been given...and continue to find gratitude for any time that I do have remaining in this life.

3)  We all travel a path that is our life.  Our path is our own and it is unlike any other.  Our oaths cross the paths of others..and sometimes our paths align for a time.  While we may travel a path together for a while, they will always break away and bring us in the direction that is meant for us alone.  This idea has brought me much comfort, as it allows me to visualize and at least attempt to give my life a structure of some kind...even though I do not know where my own path leads.  It is also a reminder that there is no one right path for me to follow...only that whatever I choose...it will be my own path.  

I am feeling better each day, and I am thankful for those in my life who send me so much love.  I am thankful for the rising sun each morning, and will continue to travel this path...but also do my best to realign my life travels so that I may (hopefully) walk alongside those I love so much for a while longer.

-a

Getting Back

 A lot of time has passed since the last post.  Life has happened...and life has also stopped happening.  The period of COVID-19 is slowly coming to an end.  With vaccinations now available nation-wide, and Illinois has officially entered "Phase 5" which basically means return to your life.  

It is now summer, and finishing the year was difficult.  We have had a lot of ups and downs as a school and district.  Teaching during this time has been both challenging and rewarding.  It truly felt like we all survived something bigger than all of us.  I kept telling students that this year will be in the history books, and they will be asked about it for a long time to come.  

While this is the second full week of summer break, it really feels like today is the beginning of break.  Family from all over began arriving the day after our final day, and we were very busy greeting guests and enjoying time to visit with so many special people who were attending Uncle Stuart's memorial.  It was a short and sweet memorial, with a nice lunch provided our cousins up north.  

So here we find ourselves in June on summer break.  I will try to be better with updates and the on-goings of the Orelove family.  More adventures to come as we open back up both as a community, and for me, personally.

-a

Audrey pictures

Finishing the year

 

Audrey made challah bread from scratch all by herself!  

The year is coming to a close.  It has been a wonderful and difficult year.  COVID has changed the entire way we live.  We shop differently.  We spend time differently.  We operate as a family differently.  

It has really been a fantastic time together, slowly growing together, learning and laughing...and fighting at times. We are closer now, but feel so isolated from our friends and family.  

Sam recently turned four years old, which comes as a complete surprise to me.  He is so smart and figures things out quickly, and loves to cause general mayhem with the dogs.  It will be wonderful to see him going to school and learning and playing with other children.  For now, though, we are content.  The girls continue to learn remotely and we are all now on winter break!  Our days are filled with playing and walking and feeding our new puppy, Luna.  She is a ball of energy and can match Sam for crazy playtime, but she is also a sweetheart.  

It has also been a difficult year, in terms of health.  Our dear Uncle Stuart passed away earlier this year, and my mother is also very sick right now.  It is hard to not be able to help people when they are sick.  It is difficult.  The love and support from everyone helps, and hopefully I will have a few more days to see my mom and reminisce before it is her time to leave this mortal coil.  

For now though, we all just slow down and breathe and do our best to just be.  

-a

Going on a trip somewhere...but we are glad to get out of the house.  

Audrey with the google eyes.  

Violet and Sam walking in the field.

Wide show of Violet and Sam in the big field.

Oskar just being Oskar.

Luna taking a nap.

Luna looking out the window.

Violet on a walk

Audrey put flavored water into shoes and said that water was running down the stairs.  She is so funny.  I don't know where she gets it.  

Movie time with my kiddos.

Sam lights the electric menorah on the first night of Hanukkah!

Sam watches his favorite show, Nailed It!, while wearing his golden baker's cap.  

Kim picked a great new coffee maker.  We now drink all the coffee.

White chocolate cranberry cookies

Mexican hot chocolate cookies.

bagels

Time Passes

 It is November and I haven't checked in in quite a while.  The days are fast, and the daily changes are infinite.  We have hunkered down over the past few months and made the best of our collective time together.  The girls are showing amazing amounts of responsibility by logging-in and completing their virtual learning.  Kim is still working virtually, too, and doing well.  Sam is active all day, and understands when it is work vs playtime.  

I have spent a lot of time transforming the guestroom into my virtual learning classroom, with an extra monitor, microphone, and document camera.  It is indeed a strange time in education.  

Now, on a quiet Sunday morning, I will finish my coffee, get some lights hung outside, and work on the endless pile of laundry.  Thanksgiving will not be the same this year, but we have made it to another Thanksgiving.  While it feels like we are all farther apart now more than ever, it is important for us to remember that we must try to build stronger relationships...as we need them now more than ever.  

-a

Falling Forward

 It has been a summer, and almost a fall since my last update.  The summer days passed too quickly, and we are still in a pandemic...still struggling as a nation to decide what kind of role we want to play in the world moving forward.

School is back in session, and the children are all attending school online.  It is different, but we are safe and healthy...and there is not much more I can ask.  The biggest challenges are the social ones.  The lack of hang outs, the missing of after school care, and the occasional overnight.  This virus has made it so we cannot make contact, and this is a challenge when we all feel so isolaed, already, with technology and computers.

Tomorrow is Indigenous Peoples day, so there will be no school.  Some friends will visit for a little while, then the afternoon will ultimately lead way to a quiet evening as a family.  The normal daily tasks are always present, but we continue to go on walks and prepare for Halloween, and relax as much as we can.  Each day is a new set of challenges and wonderful opportunities.

For now, we sit and watch a Lord of the Rings movie and slowly begin do doze off.  It is a free day tomorrow, and some smiles will be welcome visitors to our lips.