An Ode to Camire's Firecracker 4 Miler Wakefield, R.I.
April 2011. Sitting at my computer on a weeknight. Jack sound asleep in bed. No sounds in the house. No television. No music. No voices. Just me. Just quiet. Just stillness. I let out a sigh. This was calm. This was a calm I hadn't felt in weeks, months, possibly years. The chaos had reached its finale and for four months I had been discovering the challenges and perks to single motherhood. It was this moment that I recognized we (Jack and I) would be okay. We could do this. It wouldn't be easy, but we'd make it and frankly I had learned by then it takes commitment and determination to make anything happen. I've never been one to take the easy road.
This calm , this stillness, this balance was something I wanted to hold onto because it felt good, it felt right. And so it was on this Spring evening in 2011 that I found my therapist, my life coach who was going to help me be live a happy, balanced, fulfilling life. My therapist, my coach provided an environment for me to think things through, to process life events, to plan for the future all the while being sure that I was maintaining a healthy lifestyle. It was this evening in April that I signed up for my first half marathon, The Hartford Half, 13.1 miles. Running was becoming my therapy, my "me" time, my think time. I didn't need a counselor to talk to. I needed to face my life head on and allow myself to work things through in my mind, to make decisions that were right for Jack and I, and to keep myself in "check" (home, work, family ,friends). Balance I knew was key. And so there it was. I hired running. Running became my therapy and to this day I continue to keep a close relationship with running.
It is today that I think back to that evening in April that I registered for my first half marathon because it was also on that night that I registered for Wakefield, R.I.'s Camire's Firecracker 4 miler to be held on the 4th of July that summer. A race I would run in each year since Summer of 2011, including today. I have fond thoughts of this particular race because it takes place during our family vacation. Since I was a little girl, I have been vacationing on the beautiful sands of Green Hill Beach in North Kingstown, R.I. In the beginning we would stay at my Grandmother's cottage and as time and life evolved, we now bunker down at a rental my parents have gotten for the first 2 weeks of July for years, within walking distance to the beach. It's become a comfortable setting where my family gathers throughout the 2 weeks, where friends are welcome, where you can get a bit of quiet time for yourself, and where you can be free to run alongside the coastline taking in the beautiful scenery.
On July 4, 2011, I ran my first Firecracker 4 miler, but I didn't do it alone. I had my best sidekick with me. Jack was fastened into the jogging stroller and off we went, a team. He egged me on to go faster and I pushed with all my might, feeling stronger than ever. Year 2012, Jack was a little bigger, a little heavier, and a little harder to get moving in the mornings so I decided to go it alone and it was a good race especially in the middle of training for my second marathon, 14 miles on a Tuesday and at the 4 mile race the following day. Still felt strong. Today, I ran my third Firecracker 4 miler, but my son, Jack ran his first, on his own 2 feet. He ran the kids fun run prior to the 4 mile race. He was all set to run the race as we had discussed. We got to Camire's in Wakefield, R.I. I got my number. He got his. We headed to the starting line and he said to me, "but mommy, where's the jogging stroller? I thought I was running with you". A bittersweet moment to me. I'd been running with Jack in the jogging stroller for 4 years. It was our thing. He never complained about it (I may have complained on occasion). Yet, now he was old enough and big enough to run on his own. It hadn't crossed my mind to bring the jogging stroller. Instead, I was going to be watching him run. Once he realized there was no jogging stroller, he wasn't so sure about running himself. So I pinned our numbers on our shirts, walked us over to the start line and said, "don't worry bud, I am in this with you, but this is your race". And I ran with him, next to him during his race just as he had strolled along with me during my races. We are truly a team.
Jack finished his first Firecracker race and he felt strong. I ran my 4 miles and I felt strong, beating my time from last year by a minute, which in the world of running isn't so bad. As I was walking away at the end of the race, Jack's hand in mine, my mind already thinking about next year's race, I learned that this was the final year for the Firecracker 4 miler. This saddened me as I have come to love this hometown celebratory race on the 4th every summer during my family vacation. It was just becoming a tradition which now included a run for Jack as well. I am sure there will be other races to sign up for, but it is this race that I signed up for on that reflective evening in April that held a special place in my heart. Running for this race always brought me great joy whether I was running with my son or running with family members cheering me on. This race has always been part of a celebration, the start to a day with family, the beginning of a long awaited vacation, the host to positive energy. And for me, it is a race I remember signing up for when I committed myself to take my running to the next level, a decision that has left me feeling more balanced and healthy in life. It is on this day, the 4th of July when I am lacing up my sneakers that I remember signing up for my first Firecracker 4 miler during a moment of contentment, peace, and stillness. I remember the feeling clearly as if it were yesterday and am able to draw up those feelings as I make my way to the start line.
Unfortunately, many good things come to an end and it seems that this year this particular running race has reached its end. A good reminder that we cannot plan a path through life without recognizing that life will make its own turns at times with or without our consent. So with a heavy heart, I say good bye to the Camire Firecracker 4 miler, but I hold tight to the feelings this race sparked in me a few years back. Signing up for my first Firecracker 4 miler was the start of a commitment to an exercise that has brought me joy, health, balance, and a clearer mind; running. My best therapy.
Good bye Camire Firecracker 4 miler and next year, Jack and I will say "hello" to our newest running tradition, where that will be is yet to be determined as is the end of many paths in life. We face those paths not always knowing where they will lead us, but if we remember we are strong and resilient, we can handle the windy, rocky paths as well as the smooth, straight paths as I have handled muscling Jack in the jogger through a rolling 4 miles to running an easy, slow pace behind him as he completes his own running race.
This calm , this stillness, this balance was something I wanted to hold onto because it felt good, it felt right. And so it was on this Spring evening in 2011 that I found my therapist, my life coach who was going to help me be live a happy, balanced, fulfilling life. My therapist, my coach provided an environment for me to think things through, to process life events, to plan for the future all the while being sure that I was maintaining a healthy lifestyle. It was this evening in April that I signed up for my first half marathon, The Hartford Half, 13.1 miles. Running was becoming my therapy, my "me" time, my think time. I didn't need a counselor to talk to. I needed to face my life head on and allow myself to work things through in my mind, to make decisions that were right for Jack and I, and to keep myself in "check" (home, work, family ,friends). Balance I knew was key. And so there it was. I hired running. Running became my therapy and to this day I continue to keep a close relationship with running.
It is today that I think back to that evening in April that I registered for my first half marathon because it was also on that night that I registered for Wakefield, R.I.'s Camire's Firecracker 4 miler to be held on the 4th of July that summer. A race I would run in each year since Summer of 2011, including today. I have fond thoughts of this particular race because it takes place during our family vacation. Since I was a little girl, I have been vacationing on the beautiful sands of Green Hill Beach in North Kingstown, R.I. In the beginning we would stay at my Grandmother's cottage and as time and life evolved, we now bunker down at a rental my parents have gotten for the first 2 weeks of July for years, within walking distance to the beach. It's become a comfortable setting where my family gathers throughout the 2 weeks, where friends are welcome, where you can get a bit of quiet time for yourself, and where you can be free to run alongside the coastline taking in the beautiful scenery.
On July 4, 2011, I ran my first Firecracker 4 miler, but I didn't do it alone. I had my best sidekick with me. Jack was fastened into the jogging stroller and off we went, a team. He egged me on to go faster and I pushed with all my might, feeling stronger than ever. Year 2012, Jack was a little bigger, a little heavier, and a little harder to get moving in the mornings so I decided to go it alone and it was a good race especially in the middle of training for my second marathon, 14 miles on a Tuesday and at the 4 mile race the following day. Still felt strong. Today, I ran my third Firecracker 4 miler, but my son, Jack ran his first, on his own 2 feet. He ran the kids fun run prior to the 4 mile race. He was all set to run the race as we had discussed. We got to Camire's in Wakefield, R.I. I got my number. He got his. We headed to the starting line and he said to me, "but mommy, where's the jogging stroller? I thought I was running with you". A bittersweet moment to me. I'd been running with Jack in the jogging stroller for 4 years. It was our thing. He never complained about it (I may have complained on occasion). Yet, now he was old enough and big enough to run on his own. It hadn't crossed my mind to bring the jogging stroller. Instead, I was going to be watching him run. Once he realized there was no jogging stroller, he wasn't so sure about running himself. So I pinned our numbers on our shirts, walked us over to the start line and said, "don't worry bud, I am in this with you, but this is your race". And I ran with him, next to him during his race just as he had strolled along with me during my races. We are truly a team.
Jack finished his first Firecracker race and he felt strong. I ran my 4 miles and I felt strong, beating my time from last year by a minute, which in the world of running isn't so bad. As I was walking away at the end of the race, Jack's hand in mine, my mind already thinking about next year's race, I learned that this was the final year for the Firecracker 4 miler. This saddened me as I have come to love this hometown celebratory race on the 4th every summer during my family vacation. It was just becoming a tradition which now included a run for Jack as well. I am sure there will be other races to sign up for, but it is this race that I signed up for on that reflective evening in April that held a special place in my heart. Running for this race always brought me great joy whether I was running with my son or running with family members cheering me on. This race has always been part of a celebration, the start to a day with family, the beginning of a long awaited vacation, the host to positive energy. And for me, it is a race I remember signing up for when I committed myself to take my running to the next level, a decision that has left me feeling more balanced and healthy in life. It is on this day, the 4th of July when I am lacing up my sneakers that I remember signing up for my first Firecracker 4 miler during a moment of contentment, peace, and stillness. I remember the feeling clearly as if it were yesterday and am able to draw up those feelings as I make my way to the start line.
Unfortunately, many good things come to an end and it seems that this year this particular running race has reached its end. A good reminder that we cannot plan a path through life without recognizing that life will make its own turns at times with or without our consent. So with a heavy heart, I say good bye to the Camire Firecracker 4 miler, but I hold tight to the feelings this race sparked in me a few years back. Signing up for my first Firecracker 4 miler was the start of a commitment to an exercise that has brought me joy, health, balance, and a clearer mind; running. My best therapy.
Good bye Camire Firecracker 4 miler and next year, Jack and I will say "hello" to our newest running tradition, where that will be is yet to be determined as is the end of many paths in life. We face those paths not always knowing where they will lead us, but if we remember we are strong and resilient, we can handle the windy, rocky paths as well as the smooth, straight paths as I have handled muscling Jack in the jogger through a rolling 4 miles to running an easy, slow pace behind him as he completes his own running race.
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