"Just One Person"

So it's the morning of the eve of the Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon and I'm SUPPOSED to be asleep. After all, I have 2 big days ahead of me. First, I'm volunteering at tomorrow's Health Expo/Registration/Whatever else they've got. Second, my grandmother, cousin, aunt and uncle are coming in to cheer me on as I walk the half marathon on Sunday. Third, there's this little thing of walking 13.1 miles to get out of the way. Yes, I should be asleep right now and yet...I'm wide awake.

Truth is, I've been reading Facebook comments and getting so giddy and emotional and excited and overwhelmed and anxious and..well, I'm just a big old ball of nerves right now. It really does feel like Christmas Eve.

 This afternoon, I posted my before & after photos onto my Facebook page taken at the beginning and end of my time on the Covenant Health Biggest Winner Team. So many people have made such wonderfully positive comments that I've felt like a contestant on  "Queen for a Day" (you young'uns will want to google that show).


   It's not a striking difference to me  but I do think I have slimmed down/toned up.

Here...judge for yourself.

Photos courtesy of Covenant Health

 On Thursday we announced that Randy Carr is the 2012 Covenant Health Biggest Winner. I'm so excited for him because I know how far he's come and how much farther he'll go. Randy is a shining example that it's NEVER too late to start exercising and eating right. He's also one heck of a great dancer with an amazing sense of humor (oh....if you could see us carry on during our training).

As my time on the Biggest Winner team winds down,  I've felt all kinds of emotions: I'm so happy to see April 1 get here and yet, I'm sad that this part of our journey  is coming to an end. I'm thrilled that I've met so many wonderful people and yet, I wish I could see more of them. I'm honored that I have inspired some people to start their own healthy living journey and yet, I'm concerned that I might lose my drive to keep going. There's a lot of emotion going on in this sleepy little head.

 Weeks ago, I wrote a blog that I never posted because, at the time, it just didn't feel right. It was written after our walk at Cades Cove and I was going through some personal issues and just didn't feel like sharing it because I felt it was "all over the place" and didn't make sense. But tonight, as I worked off some nervous energy, I realized that now is the perfect time to post it. So here you go...and remember...we all can inspire each other...all it takes is "Just one person".


Written in early March:

Tonight while working around the house, I starting singing a song that I remembered from a high school production of "Snoopy! The Musical" . This song, "Just One Person",  was a signature song of that musical and eventually became (although I don't really know how) one of the songs performed in several episodes of "The Muppets". I think the lyrics are simply amazing...judge for yourself.


If just one person believes in you,
Deep enough, and strong enough, believes in you...
Hard enough, and long enough,
It stands to reason, that someone else will think
"If he can do it, I can do it."
Making it: two whole people, who believe in you
Deep enough, and strong enough,
Believe in you.
Hard enough and long enough
There's bound to be some other person who
Believes in making it a threesome,
Making it three.....
People you can say: believe in me.....
 And if three whole people,
Why not -- four?
And if four whole people,
Why not--more, and
more, and
more....

And when all those people,
Believe in you,
Deep enough, and strong enough,
Believe in you...
Hard enough, and long enough

It stands to reason that you yourself will
Start to see what everybody sees in
You...

And maybe even you,
Can believe in you... too!



The song was so special that after creator Jim Henson died, it was included in a tribute episode of the Muppets. You can see that YouTube Clip here.
And if you REALLY want to be get the tears flowing, watch this clip of the puppeteers performing the song at  Henson's memorial service.



Over the past few months, I've thought a lot about the lyrics to this wonderful song. ...I've thought about it a lot.

If someone had told me one year ago that I would be about to walk 13.1 miles, I would have laughed. But, times have changed. I've changed.
 
 It took some my family and friends, old and new, to show me how to believe in myself again. I'm not where I need to be yet..but I'm darn sure closer to getting there.
 When I met my team mates on that November morning, I never knew how much I would grow to love and appreciate them. They have blessed me with each and every step we've taken together. I've said it before and it bears repeating: You learn a lot about someone when you walk upwards miles with them. We have kept each other going through some fun times and difficult ones. They'll never fully understand how much I appreciate them.

The title and lyrics of this song have hit home to me in more ways during this part of my life. It really does just take one person to believe in themselves...in anything they do. I believed I could lose weight and I have. I believe I can lose more weight, and I will.  If you see me do it..then well, maybe you'll try. It's like a little healthy bee pollinating one flower and then the next.

So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you to each and every one of you who has stopped me to say how proud they are of me, who have written or expressed encouragement to me to keep going and most of all, thank you for for believing in me.  As the song says "It stands to reason that you yourself will start to see what everybody sees in you.."

"Too late...to turn back now"

Well...we're less than a week away from the Covenant Health Knoxville Marathon. Since January, well November really, I have spent every single weekend walking with my team mates (except for one day around Christmas) preparing for the big day, April 1.  I have logged miles and miles, told and heard countless stories and laughed more than I have in ages.

To be honest, I'm sad to see it end.

 Tonight our team met at Ye Olde Steakhouse in South Knoxville (Team Mate Hugh is the top chef there and boy, was that steak yummy). Tonight, we talked and reflected about the exciting (and hilarious) parts of our training, the things we've learned and what we're nervous or worried about as we inch closer to April 1.
I said this at the table and I'll write it now: I don't do anything unless I want to do it. Since November, I have not missed any of our Saturday morning walks/runs and none of our Thursday night strength trainings....and all of this is because of  each and every person (team mates and trainers) who has  have helped me come so far since that first day when we all met.
One person put it best tonight: It's been like a family.

Speaking of family, this has been an exciting week for me as I have learned that my cousin is flying in from San Antonio and she'll bring my grandmother to Knoxville to cheer me on race day. By doing this, coming to Knoxville from so far to encourage and cheer me on..means more than me than just about anything else in this world. This news was a particularly high point on a day where I hit some low points.
 Saturday was one of those oddly weird or weirdly odd days that you can't really explain except to say "You just had to be there and be glad you weren't." First-the storms. I don't really want to write about it except to say "man, that was a bad storm".
Oh and then the walk--well, it was 5 miles which is far less than it has been but far more interesting than it ever has been. I don't know if the written word could ever do justice to what happened but I'll try to explain from my point of view in my best-bad-author style of writing:

 It was a sunny day after a dark and stormy night. I had joined my team mates for a walk around Volunteer Landing in Knoxville.  As we walked towards a  bridge, none of us could have imagined what would happen next.
"Can you hold Zombie for me?" asked Darla, pointing to her dog. I nodded to assure her that I wouldn't mind.
 Suddenly, we heard a noise. Both of us  looked over our shoulders and saw a car coming from behind. There was a rattle and then a hum (wait, that's a U2 album)...but there was a rattle and then a hub cap fell off the wheel of the car. It hit the road and started rolling. Curious, I looked to see where the car was going and what the driver was doing. Stunned, I saw that he was unaware of losing his hub cap.
  Soon after, the hub cap kept rolling, and despite my thoughts that it would stop...it didn't. It didn't slow down, it got faster. Rolling towards the people ahead of me, there was only a few seconds to try and warn my team mates whose named had  escaped me. Darla, who had been watching along with me, shouted first and then I yelled.  I saw one of my team mates' cell phone go flying. Another stood there stunned. We rushed to them to see if they were okay. The hub cap had grazed her finger, and she was cut and bleeding. The other team mate narrowly escaped very serious injury. My team mate ended up needing stitches and I'm sure the other team mate needed a "nerve pill". Both were certainly counting their blessings that there weren't any very serious injuries.


 It was a very eventful walk to say the least. Each week, the team and I have talked about what we plan on doing after race day. Most of us would like to keep meeting up. I sincerely hope we do and that we can keep encouraging each other to another marathon in 2013. Time will tell if we do but my money and hopes are on the thought that we will continue, together.