We started at the little school where my girls go when Bella Kate was in the second grade.  Never in a million years did I EVER think we would send our kids to a private school, but things change. So in the year 2020, we decided to switch schools and Bella Kate started her second grade year with a precious teacher at this little school.

One of the things we quickly learned was that most all of the kids got really excited about running for the cross country team.  It was one of the only sports that everyone (meaning Kindergarten through 5th grade) could do, but it was also the sport with the biggest and most fun after season party. So the motivation to run for a majority of the students was this legendary after season party.

Bella Kate didn’t run cross country that first year but after seeing the after season party, she decided she wanted to run her 3rd grade year.   That just so happened to be the year that Carly started Kindergarten and Carly has ALWAYS tried to keep up with her big sister. So, of course, she wanted to run too. 

Practice was held in the field next to school and everyone got popsicles at the end of each practice.  It was not my girls’ favorite thing to do, but they also were not completely miserable.  They got to play with their friends a little longer in the afternoon and were able to run off some of the energy they had from sitting in class all day.  

It was all fun and games until the day of the first race. Both girls were pretty quiet on the way to the park which usually means that they are full of nerves.  None of us really knew what to expect as I had never attended a cross country race either.  I just tried to assure them that if they simply did their best I would be so very proud of them. 

As I watched each category of people run, I watched as a little girl crossed the finish line and proceeded to vomit all over the place. For the rest of the races, runners (and parents) had to try to avoid that part of the finish line.  I watched so many kids cry a large portion of the race from exhaustion.  I watched parents running along the outside of the track with their kids and cheering them on the whole way.  Then there were the parents like myself. I am not, nor have I ever been a runner and so I waited with the girls at the starting line, briskly walked to the middle portion of the race and then leisurely strolled back to the finish line to wait for my girls and cheer them on.

Running a mile for kids that age is hard and I was so proud of them.  You could tell, especially in the uphill middle, that they were tired.  They were hot.  They were ready to give up, but they kept moving. When they saw me cheering for them, they each smiled with pride and ran a little faster to show me how fast they could run. 

After a quick stop for Kona Ice near the finish line, we hopped in the car to head home.  My momma heart was BURSTING with pride.  I waited until we got in the car to say what I wanted to say because some of their friends cried all the way to the finish line.  So when we got in the car, I said, “Girls, I am SO proud of you.  You did something hard today and you did it with a smile on your face.  You didn’t give up. You didn’t get discouraged.  You kept going and you finished it. I am SO SO PROUD OF YOU!”  

I then asked each of them what they thought.  Carly immediately looked at me with a look of pure disgust all over her face and said, “Mom, I am NEEEEVVER doing that again!” And I didn’t even know how to respond.

So maybe my pride alone was not going to be enough to make this adventure “fun” for Carly. Heat and Carly are not friends. She has always HATED to get hot.  She actually told me just this morning that she is more of a cold weather person… and I agree.  She is a lot like her daddy who has to be part polar bear.  

The thing about Carly is that she is athletic.  Bella Kate has the heart and desire but has to work really hard while Carly is more natural but has no desire. When it comes to running, Carly is just a really good runner.  She has the right stride and the perfect gait to do really well in cross country.  But especially that day, she had NO desire to EEEEVER do it again.  

Once she had a little while to cool off and then experienced the after season party, Carly decided to give it another shot.  So the next year, both girls once again ran cross country.  At the first meet, Bella Kate did really well and was so proud of herself.  (Even though she was in the last portion of the runners to finish, she did her very best which made us so proud too. She actually ended the season with the most improved time.)  She kept a positive attitude and honestly that is what makes my momma heart the proudest.

When it was Carly’s turn to run, I had been helping get stickers on the runners and had missed being at the starting line.  The first thing I noticed when I found her running in the middle was that she had on 2 different pairs of shoes.  The second thing I noticed was that she was holding hands with one of her friends while awkwardly trying to run.  

Now, please understand that I am not the most competitive person in the world, but when you are at a cross country meet… you RUN.  You don’t mess around with crazy shoe ideas. You don’t hold hands with your best friend.  You do your best not to walk unless you need to… you just RUN.  So we told Carly that she needed to stop holding hands with her friends so she could run.  She reluctantly obeyed but I could tell she still waited for her friend to keep pace with her which was causing her to slow down.

Even with all of those things, she finished in the top 20.  And there were a quite a few little kids running this race!

She has always been the more competitive of the two girls and so when we got in the car, I simply asked her if she would like to win a medal. Of course she said yes. So I told her that if she could have gotten a medal that day but she would need to wear her own shoes, stop holding hands with her friends, stop waiting for her friends and just run.  You could see her wheels turning as she sat in the back seat on the drive home.  I just let it simmer for her.

The next race, she wore her own shoes. She didn’t wait on her friends or hold hands with her friends. She ran. John walked to various parts of the race track and about 3/4ths of the way through the race she had started walking but she wasn’t out of breath.  It was almost like she didn’t have anyone with her so she just decided to walk a little and check out the scenery.  As he walked along the sidelines, John reminded her of her goal to get a medal and told her that if she ran, she just might get one.  Carly proceeded to SPRINT the rest of the race and ended up coming in 7th.  She got her medal for being one of the first 10 people to cross the finish line and she was one happy little girl.   (She wasn’t even winded!)

I am reminded of Hebrews 12:1-2 which says “Therefore since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up.  And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.”

When Carly took off her friend’s shoes she was able to run better.  When Carly stopped holding hands with her friends and instead became bold enough to run fast even if it meant she might feel like she was running alone, she ran better. When Carly focused on the prize at the end, she ran better.  When Carly looked around and saw her father watching her and cheering for her, she ran better.  

What is it that holds you back? 

Is it a friend who always seems to talk you into something you know is not really in your best interest? Is it the coworker that complains about everything and you quickly find yourself doing the same?   Is it a secret sin or addiction that has a death grip on your hand and slows you down so much you can’t even imagine being able to run freely? Is it something you are wearing… maybe not physically but emotionally.  Is it the wrong sized sneaker of regret or maybe the high heels of shame or maybe it’s the flip flops of simply not doing the things you know you should be doing?  What would it feel like to take those things off? To just let those things go?

Maybe it’s time to focus on the prize. What is your prize?  We are told that our minds can’t comprehend what is waiting for us in heaven.  It’s easy to get discouraged when all around us is so NOT heaven.  The negativity of the news,  the hatred and blame we see all around us, but when we are in that uphill hard middle, maybe we simply need to look for our Father and let HIM remind us of the prize at the end of our race.  

Whatever you do, just keep running!