Good news: even though my cold is lingering, I have just ran to lab from my apartment and it felt great, I only sneezed once - I think because I stopped, just gotta keep running!! - blew my nose twice, everything else was perfect. Temperature, sun, breeze, it's a perfect weekend in NYC! As I crossed 1st Ave on 116th St, I looked up North, towards the Bronx: that will be the hardest part tomorrow. I took in the view, tried to remember the feeling of it, the emotions, the exhaustion that sets in around that point in the race, and then I smiled. I am looking forward to every moment of it, even the bad ones, the hard ones, because that's what makes this an experience of a lifetime. If it was easy, nobody would work so hard to do it.
Just one more picture from the expo yesterday. I didn't have a whole lot of time to linger, but the energy was fantastic. It was super crowded, lots of foreigners who are in town for the race, all buying loads of overpriced marathon gear, hearing all kinds of languages, seeing all the people being so excited, a little anxious: it made me feel part of a big community.
On my way to the expo, walking to the subway, I saw a man, 40's maybe, in very good shape, walking with a map in his hand, marathon shirt, marathon jacket, running shoes. He was obviously European, looking up at the skyscrapers in Midtown. We walked side by side for a few blocks, then as I entered the subway station, I looked over at him, smiled, gave a little nod as to acknowledge that we were both part of this great event, both at home in this city. As he smiled back, I was filled with a sudden warmness, with a feeling of love, for this city, for the people who come here either for just the weekend to run, or to spend their lives. Sometimes I complain about New York and even feel that I should move on, try a different city for a change, but in that moment, I could not imagine being anywhere else in the world. Please watch this video and you might understand a little bit of why.
No comments:
Post a Comment