The Post-VBS Run

THE TRUE MEASURE OF A RUN

If one knew that he/she had limited strength and recovery ability.
And this one knew that he/she was going to run about 4.45 miles on Saturday morning.
And this one knew that he/she should limit the amount and intensity of activity on the day and evening prior to the 4.45 mile run so that one's strength would be adequate to perform said run.

Then one would not wash the car on Thursday.
And one would not decide to trim the hedge and sundry yard bushes on Thursday.
And one would not delay Thursday's weight workout to Friday morning.
And one would not mow the grass of one's yard on Friday after the weight workout.
And one would not decide to help move church furniture and help clean up the Vacation Bible School decorations after the closing program after the weight workout and cutting of the yard grass.
And, knowing that one needs plenty of rest prior to the 4.45 mile run on Saturday, one would not get engaged in looking up information on the internet after coming home from cleaning up the Vacation Bible School decorations after the closing program, and stay up late on Friday night.

But I did all that.
And the run this morning was another slog.
The session started at 6:02 AM in cloudy, humid weather.
The temperature was about 70 F, with a nice steady west wind of about 5-10 mph.
I spent almost the entire session alternating between "normal" breathing rate and my accelerated breathing after topping Hill One.

In addition, in the middle of mile three (as usual) my left (as usual) hammies started to whine (as usual).
The unanimous response from Running Central, the Coach in me, and the Runner in me, was "Sorry about that. Deal with it."
Which (as usual) the hammies did.
I actually felt a little sorry for my left hamstrings today.
They HAVE been busy.

The good news is that I did not have to stop and walk (though part of me was warning about old runners dropping dead from overdoing it, etc.).
The other good news was that I arrived at the finish line/crack at 6:44 AM.

Forty-two minutes.
Not bad for a tired old man.
So, it does not really matter how one feels during a session.
One may feel good or bad.
It matters not.
The clock always tells the truth.
The clock said I had a pretty good session today.

I have promised myself that I will do a better job of pre-run preparation next time.

VBS

Our Vacation Bible School this year was a major disappointment to me.
This had nothing to do with the people who worked so hard to prepare everything, learn the songs, study the lessons, prepare the snacks, etc.

It had more to do with the number of kids who came.
Attendance was a disappointment to me.
I found myself having to "jack up" myself to get over the thoughts of "wasted effort" and such like.
And I was not feeling that it was MY effort that was being "wasted".
My role is relatively minor, and that is fine with me.
I was thinking more of all the other church folks who had helped.

Fortunately, by the last evening, my (and the Lord's) jacking up had worked.
I looked at the effort as a seed-sowing time.
God can take little and make it much.
And sometimes the "little" is so little that we do not even notice it.
But God does.
And He can magnify it in the mind of a child into something that stays alive in them for years.
And then He can add another element to it and move that person to the point a making a decision to repent and be born again.

So that is what I am trusting will happen this year.