Take A Message

My 9 year old rarely stops moving.  She has a hard time sitting through a meal, she stands to do her homework, and when she's not trying to be still, she's dancing, cartwheeling, jumping, running...you get the point.  She's a mover.  I am always telling her to slow down.  And she is always rolling her eyes at me.  I'm sure her energy will eventually serve her well, but at the moment, it can be very tough to manage.  Yesterday she hopped out of bed and ran downstairs to get breakfast.  Her wheels were spinning so quickly that she lost her footing on our basement stairs and somersaulted down the entire flight.  Fortunately, she is both agile and flexible, so she bent in all the right places and managed to walk (or hop) away with a small scratch on her back and a bump on her bed.  But, I could see the fear in her eyes as she described what happened with tears rolling down her cheeks.  She was really shaken up.  It was not the right moment to say something like..."Rosie, this is why I am always telling you to slow down", though I did think it to myself.  Instead, I gave her a hug, told her I was sorry and remarked on how incredibly tough she was.  I also made a mental note to chat with her at a later time about her fall and the message she could take from it.  Let's rewind a bit.  Last week, as some of you may know, I slipped as I was walking down my neighbor's stairs and landed on my back, bruising my ribs.  It was incredibly painful and I was incredibly annoyed with myself.  This type of injury is particularly frustrating because there is nothing you can do to heal other than take it easy.  I can sit still and focus for a lot longer than my daughter can, but I have a very tough time "taking it easy".  Having done this exact thing less than two years ago, I know it takes a while for the ribs to heal.  So, to my dismay, this injury is forcing me to chill out for a while.  Today, I can't help but think there is a message I should be taking from this, much like there was for Rosie when she tumbled down the stairs.  I have run three marathons this year and several other smaller races.  I have trained and raced while dealing with plantar fasciitis in both of my feet.  In between races, I have not given them the rest they need/want because I am impatient and more than willing to run through discomfort.  More recently, I have also been battling a pulled hamstring on my right leg.  It started to bother me just after the Plymouth marathon that I ran in November and hasn't let up since....not that I have given it a chance.  I have gotten a sports massage, rolled, iced, heated, biofreezed (is that a verb?)... all those things and yet it has still been bugging me on every run whether it's 4 miles or 10.  I have been running for most of my life.  You would think as I got older I'd listen more closely to my body, but no.  For some reason, I have been shutting out the noise my feet and hamstring have been making.  Perhaps my music is too loud.  Or, more likely, I am just being stubborn.  Do I think I was meant to fall?  Not really.  I don't think Rosie was either.  But I do believe that sometimes things happen for a reason.  Some higher power was telling me to stop.  To give my feet and legs the break they have been asking for.  To be mindful.  To listen.  Like Rosie, this might be where I roll my eyes and say "whatever".  But this time, I'm taking the message.  It's been a week since I fell and my feet feel significant relief.  Imagine that??  It's been a day since Rosie fell and she's already bouncing around like a ping pong ball.  Go figure.  But she's a kid.  Our minds work differently.  Thankfully, the message will always be there for both of us.  I hear it now.  She'll hear it eventually.

Listen to this:
Gold - Sir Sly     


One more thing:
Since we're talking about messages, I have one more.  Okay, it's more of a question.  WHAT DID YOU LISTEN TO THIS YEAR?  Share your favorite song/album from 2013 for running, dancing, whatever.  Click to comment and you'll be entered to win goodies from Yurbuds & Runnerbox.  It's so easy...just leave a message at the beep.  Beeeeep.