The
4th of July was the first holiday H celebrated last year. I was so thrilled,
because it is my favorite holiday. There is so much pride in my heart for this
country, for those that were brave enough to pioneer the efforts into
establishing it, for who we are. Ric know's that when we have a home, I have a
solid request for a flag pole to proudly wave the American flag each day on our
property. I am honored to be living in a country founded on God, family,
freedom and independence. I respect the privilege of being here, one of the
greatest gifts I've been given.
image: pixabay
Our
little fam enjoyed the day off of work & school, ran the Sandy City 5K,
watched a sand volleyball tournament in Park City & spent the evening doing
a firework show with family.
Notice
how I casually put "ran a 5K" in the mix of things and moved
on...well, I want to give you some background. My husband and I showed up the
race with full intentions of pushing H through the 3 mile course and just
enjoying time outside. Running wasn't an option because where my lung function
levels are right now. My last PFT (pulmonary function test) showed they were
hovering just above 50%. I have a difficult time doing things around the house
& going up stairs isn't very fun. When we showed up to the starting line, a
cousin offered to watch H so we didn't have to push him. I thought about it for
several moments & let him stay. I told Ric I wanted to try and run, I'll do
the 2 minute run/walk method to pace myself and just finish. I encouraged him to
run at his own pace, or with some of my other athletic, speedy cousins. He
insisted on staying with me for obvious reasons that don't need mentioning. I
didn't argue too much because I knew this was going to be hard for me, and
difficult things are easier with some good eye candy next to you. ;) I made it
to the two minute transition to where I would start walking, but felt pretty
good and wanted to keep running still. My legs weren't moving fast, people were
passing by. At the half way mark, I was really struggling. My lungs were
burning, they were coughing. Ric started telling me his childhood stories to
distract me, but laughing wasn't helping this situation any! He threw out as
many inspiring quotes as he could think of, and ended with, "remember the
soldiers that have fought and currently fight for this country. Keep moving
your legs & pushing yourself like they have done for us." Boom, he
struck the chord that resonated inside me today, with everything I believe.
Several, several minutes passed by and then several more, we saw the
"finish" line sign. I knew Hawke was going to be at the end and oh
boy did I swell with love and tears. He was going to watch us RUN across that
finish line.
When
we finished I had to take a few minutes to myself, acknowledging my body for
what it had just done. I used to be very healthy and in strong lung function.
Three miles was almost a daily thing for me. But I've been really struggling
since I got pregnant with H and my lungs haven't recovered. This was something
I'd wondered if I'd be able to do again. Today it happened. Because of the
support of my husband, my son, my Father in Heaven. He knew I needed something
like this to give me encouragement and calm my wandering mind. Things are okay,
things are going to be okay.
I
couldn't resist posting H's little bum sticking in the air!
Xx,
Mand
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