The Final Countdown

Unlike millions (probably right?) of other college students who were/are spending their Spring Break under the sun with friends somewhere far from where they spend the majority of their year, I have elected to take some time and spend it, well… not with everyone else. However, this time alone has allowed me to delude myself into thinking that I am studying, working on running a bit and catching up on sleep. In order to properly describe the mood this past week, I must first introduce a little climate analysis for Toledo, OH during late March. Simplest put, it can be described as cold, harsh and windy with a chance of spring teasing.

However, running depends so much on these cold, harsh and windy days. As one of the members in the club put it, you’re a “fake runner” until you run when it's less than 50 degrees Fahrenheit (or as I like to think about it, when there’s no life outside). For me, running on these days usually means running alone. I use to be a huge listen-to-music-while-running kind of person, but over the years, I’ve largely given that up since road running is already dangerous enough. So nowadays, I tend to mostly just contemplate about my life while I get my 6 miles in for training. It’s actually surprising how much you can think about in just 40 minutes.

After spending many days idling away and making lame excuses to not run, I decided that going for a run would probably help my upcoming half-marathon. Also running is the best (no, you are not allowed to argue with me on this point) stress relief. So I set up for a very punishing run (34 degrees with 10 mph wind). As always, the hardest part of the run was getting out there. After finish my first 1.5 miles, I thought back to when I started running again (early May during junior year of high school). I was so different then. During the last 4 years, my life has transformed so much. My typical, most generic, average day run is around 6 miles. Four years ago, I struggled to run 5 miles. Luckily, the last four years brought much more than just running, but also a new life and a new group of friends. While I still have parts of my old life and my closest friends from high school, I have come to realize that I have changed so much. While I have wanted to be a doctor since high school, I am actually facing that dream in the face right now (I take my MCAT tomorrow morning). Despite it being the hardest test I have ever taken in my entire life (essentially every science, math and literature test I have taken since sophomore year of high school combined into one), I know that I will take it with confidence to do the best I can. I know that I would have passed out, maybe even have a heart attack, if I were told to take the MCAT during high school. Even the simplest accomplishments over the last few years have helped me get to the stage that I am at now.