I received an message from my former coaching partner, Carl Anderson. He and I coached cross-country together for 10 years. He was texting me to say that tonight was the first night of practice for the season...and he was thinking of me.
Oh I miss that sport. And I miss Carl. We spent hours over the years talking about our runners. We spent hours upon hours running with them. We spent loads of Saturdays walking through fields that were wet with dew at 7 a.m. in the morning - a trail of 50 middle schoolers romping around us - with wet shoes and anticipation for a win. In our time we saw a great deal of success and even swept the City Tournament in all 4 races one year...never been done...might never be done again. I have multiple plaques hanging on my office wall from Oak Hills, reminding me of what, thanks to God, our teams accomplished.
I miss Carl - his friendship, his excellence in coaching, and his completely obsessive, unbalanced passion for the sport.
I miss the kids - their middle school moronic behavior, their tiresome effort, and watching them grow and become more than they even thought they could be.
I miss practice - training with the girls, reminding them to breathe rhythmically, telling them to stop crying while running, listening to the drama of their lives, and pushing myself up to my own physical limits.
I miss the races - running from spot to spot on the course to see what position the runners are in, counting the runners to see if we were going to beat Mason, reminding them as they ran by to focus on their breathing, and watching that final stretch to the finish line; seeing up close what courage in the face of so much pain looks like.
I miss my mile time - it was the fastest of my life (6:34) - man I wish I could get that back again.
There is no other sport like it. The life skill of mind over body, choice over desire, purpose over pain - it certainly transfers to other areas of life. To want so badly to quit, to be in so much pain, but yet to choose to keep going because you believe the end is worth it....that's some seriously good stuff. And to do it not because your peers at your school are going to glorify you for being a cross-country champion (we all know that's reserved for other sports)....but to do it because of some greatness in you or because your team desperately needs you....now that's incredible. I owe a deep gratitude to Carl for allowing me to coach with him and for showing me what excellence in coaching looks like. As I look back I realize that my life is different....it is better....because of those 10 years.
Thankful.
