Thoughts about the marathon

There were all walks of life that were running this marathon… from the HUGE Japanese entourage (they probably made the bulk of the runners), to the costumes that people wore…

People were running for many causes – Team to end Aids… Finding a cure for Leukemia… In memory of - their Mom, Dad, Grandma, friend, cousin… to thank everyone for help to Japan…

Some ran to start their life with someone by proposing before crossing the finish line… Some ran the race for the very first time (Like ME!) Some have ran it so many times, they could make a quilt! Young as 8 years old that day, to 93 years old…

Some ran in costume! I saw Darth Vader…the Viking guy… Mario and Luigi… a guy on stilts… Mickey and Minnie Mouse… a guy in a tux… a gal in a veil…a lady in a cheetah outfit… a guy in a tiger outfit… a Hawaiian Warrior (full getup too!)… Santa… a sexy Mrs. Claus…hats of all sorts that had characters on them like snowmen, antlers…many colored afros… tutus of all colors… someone ran with the American Flag all the way… some ran in cadence… some even ran BAREFEET. Crazy… there was one guy that had a swan/goose hat with the “matching” swan goose shorts – the swan/goose was bobbing up and down as he ran… I even saw a guy with an actual faucet in front of his shorts! What the heck…

What got me most of all were the people that came out to cheer all of us… Of course there were the sponsored events people – JAL, HIS, JTB, Satohap… with all their noise makers and cheering everyone to continue going… there were the smaller stores like Lululemon that had their signs of encouragement – “You are a winner” “You can do it” “I believe in You”…

There were families and friends that came out to cheer for their significant other with food and signs… I got choked up with the first two signs running up Kapiolani Blvd.. a little girl in her stroller at 5:15 in the morning. Her Dad was there sipping his cup of coffee. She was holding a sign “I love you mommy!”… Then there was an elderly lady with her big white sign that read “You are all Winners!”

I thanked people that were just saying such wonderful words, encouraging us to continue. They were out there cheering us on and I had no idea who they were! I told them “Thank you for being there.”

When starting the race, I looked up at the moonlit sky, and thanked God and my Mom…. The fireworks were amazing!!! I couldn’t stop looking at the sky so lit up in lights! There were over 27,000 people that were running the race and yes, for those of you that thought we were crazy… yes, there were thousands of us that certainly were!

When I saw my family, my sister was taking pictures of us running.. my kiddies with their signs that read “Awesome You”… I was told later that it was supposed to say “You are Awesome”. Ha ha ha! I think the 1st one was sufficient enough.

As of today, I’m finally recovered… had my pedicure the next day, and relaxed. I’m ready to go back to running and staying fit again for the next race. What’s that you ask? The Great Aloha Run, Ford Island Run, Pearl Harbor Run… just for starters…