The Long & Winding Road, March 31st

Just when you think that the end is in sight, sometimes there’s just one more curve you have to negotiate before you cross the finish line. The pandemic comes to mind of course… Vaccines will take years to develop! There is a vaccine—we’re saved. You won’t be eligible for months! Oh wait— you’re old enough so it’s your turn. You need two doses– but not yet. You need a booster– but you have to wait. You might need a booster every year or even every six months! There’s another variant? And another. That one was serious. This one is mild. It’s like a marathon.

I think at this point we realize that Covid is here to stay. And so are masks depending on where you live. And protocols. And some degree of uncertainty. But we’ll come through this together, eventually. And I for one hope there are medals to be awarded at the end and yes in this case… everybody gets one. (Cue the second-grade orchestra!)

Since college, one of my life goals was to run a marathon and in 2005 that dream became a reality with my participation in the NYC race. I actually was selected at random in the lottery for 2004, but due to an elite runner’s injury of my left piriformis (thankyouverymuch) I had to defer a year while I juggled physical therapy and learning to stretch with semi-regular orthopedic doctor visits to monitor my progress. (Little did I know the whole visit the doctor thing would be a regular thing years later. Ugh!)

Once healed, I trained for ten solid months at least five times a week and in 2005 I found myself in peak form and was ready to conquer the road. I did almost all of my training in Central Park since it was literally in my backyard. (A block behind my house to be exact.) If you’re not familiar with CP, it’s a gorgeous sprawling public park in NYC located between 59^th Street and 112^th Street and bordered by Central Park West and 5^th Avenue. There are countless walking paths, several lawns, numerous playgrounds, statues, a carousel, a bandshell, creatures large and small, an outdoor theater, lots of carts selling hot dogs, climbing rocks, a meadow or two, ball fields, tennis courts, a skating rink, a man selling ice cream, not enough restrooms, a few water features including a reservoir, and some lovely gazebos.

But for a runner, Central Park’s most important attribute is of course The Loop— 6.1 miles of uneven pavement circling the interior of the park that beckons our needy footsteps on a regular basis. Because I live on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, the entry point closest to my house is the ramp next to the famous Tavern On The Green restaurant at West 67^th Street.

Every year, The New York City Marathon begins at Fort Wadsworth, Staten Island and weaves a course through all five boroughs, ending in Manhattan. The finish line of the 26.2-mile race happens to be exactly where I enter the Park at Tavern On The Green! It’s very Circle of Life Lion King to me—starting my training at a restaurant and ending the race at a restaurant. (You’re laughing, right? Me=same.) The Marathon is literally a long and winding road that leads me right to their door.

So on race day, along with 36,000 other excited exercisers, I ran all 26.2 miles (in a row!) to complete this challenge in completely non-impressive form. I wasn’t going for the record. I was going for the experience, for the accomplishment itself, for bucket list bragging rights.

My Aunt Sydell was a surprise spectator clad in a wizard hat so I’d spot her in the crowd in Queens. She was holding a lifesaving banana with my name on it. That was a huge boost! My son was with my Dad on the magical miles of First Avenue holding up a sign that said, “My mom is the fastest runner ever.” Not true but damn I loved that sign! My Mom was further up the First Avenue path with a Gatorade and pretzels. The day was just great.

Anyway, as many times as I had run The Loop, those last few miles during the actual race seemed to take forever to complete— even though I knew every tree, branch, pothole, and crosswalk. And I thought to myself, “Jeez! This is like a marathon!” And of course I cracked myself up during that last stretch to the finish line with that thought.

I heard a great quote recently that I can’t remember exactly but the gist of it was that it’s not just where your journey takes you but who you become along the way that is significant. And I loved the concept as it brought me back to my own personal marathon journey. Who I became during the training of that race was a disciplined, fiercely determined badass who proved to herself that she could achieve any goal.

It’s been quite a while since the marathon but I still remember my tenacity to fulfill that dream– I let nothing stand in my way. So here’s to you (and me) and whatever paths we actively decide to follow. May we all keep evolving into better versions of ourselves, charting some impressive footprints along the long and winding road ahead.