Wow...I don't even know where to start today. The last two days have been full of such beauty and so much support and love from friends that I hardly know what to say. About 285 miles done and one more day to go!!! I can hardly believe it.
Running to Iowa City was pretty emotional for me. I started out just west of Parnell and had the luck of running under the prettiest morning sky that I have ever seen. The clouds were unlike any I've ever seen before. It was like the gods had parted the sky and I could practically see rays of love energy shining down on the planet. Day 7 had been particularly painful for me, so I was relieved to find that I could actually run this morning with minimal pain. The previous day I had cut my run short to receive massage from Nancy and PT treatment from Tim....he did this magic tape job on my legs...which helped soooo much! The lack of pain actually gave me the opportunity to enjoy that magical sky and some of the prettiest countryside I've ever seen. About an hour into the run, the most awesome Mary Dix joined me on her bike. We shared stories, stared in awe at the beauty of the sky and enjoyed an awesome morning. Another hour or so passed and Christy joined me on her bike! Every little show of support, sign of beauty etc moved me to tears yesterday. So much gratitude.
Even lunch was more exciting. A a super sweet reporter from KCRG found me and did a quick interview...I was hoping that my hair looked okay :)
In the afternoon Bruce Thayer joined me for a lovely 7 mile hike into Iowa City. I could feel my spirits lift as we approached the city. About 1 mile from IC, Nancy called to say that she had another massage opening at Twin Image, which just so happened to be one block from my ending point. So, I literally walked straight to the spa. I hobbled in, collapsed on the chair, and hopefully didn't offend the customers too much when I took off my shoes. From the massage, I went straight to my TIm the PT's house to get taped! So sweet of him to do this for me again!! Got home just in time to eat a quick bite of food before heading right out to College Green Park. The gods were smiling as they provided the most gorgeous evening in the world for a community yoga class.
Again, I can't even describe how much bliss and gratitude I felt with the yoga class. Close to 100 people came out to show their support and be with each other for a magical evening. I am so thankful for the other teachers, Chris who provided music for us, Jennifer who provided food for the evening, the many people who helped to promote the evening....and of course, the most gratitude for every single person who was there! It was so beautiful to just be there with everyone practicing together...even though I couldn't really do half the postures last night...just to be in that energy uplifted and inspired me. Thank you a million times.
This morning, I met Jen Oliver, Shane and Derrek for a run towards Wilton Iowa! Sweet Jen told us that she had never run more than ten miles...and she didn't even call her husband for a ride until she had gone 12 this morning. Then, of course, it took him a while to get here, so by the time she was done, she had run 15 miles!! Rock star! Meanwhile, Shane had just completed, and won (!!!) a 100 mile trail run just two weeks ago...and he still ran with me the whole day! And boy was it helpful. Despite being only one day from the end, I once again went through a time period of thinking that I couldn't do it. As a seasoned ultra runner with a huge heart, Shane knew just the right things to say to keep me going. As usual, the intense pain once again passed, I made it to lunch and then was even able to run again for portions of the last 4 miles. Today my sister Erin and her husband Dann joined us after traveling all the way from Toronto!! They had cups of water ready for us at least every hour and smiled and cheered for us all along the way! SO nice to be with my mom and sister now!! Everyone single person with me today was so incredibly supportive. How lucky am I???
For the first time, it had gotten hot! It was about 92 by the time I had finished, but those weather gods were smiling...a lovely breeze fanned us as we made our way through the last portions of the course today. Another highlight on course today was a small herd of alpacas that came right up to the fence to say hello. Soo cute!!! I think I might get a couple as a reward for myself for finishing this run. Alpacas and a couple of goats. Seems like an appropriate prize, right?
For lunch today, I was actually craving meat. I think my iron had gotten low after all this running, and wanted nothing more than a big, fat juicy steak. To my delight, right around lunch time, I saw a herd of buffalo. So I started jogging after them. I had heard that humans have in fact run animals down to the point of exhaustion in what is called persistence hunting. After all these days on the go, here was my opportunity to try it. I was slow and steady and began to zero in on the weak buffalo. With the hot temperatures, I was able to make good progress (buffalo can't really sweat). Soon I was close enough to hone in on my prey. I didn't have a spear, but luckily, I had my trusty trekking pole....okay, i can't even type this out as a pretend story, because even the thought of killing a buffalo is making me sad!! So, I actually just stuck with my carrots, tofu and potato chips. Can I tell you how many potato chips I've eaten on this trip??? I think I might turn into one soon.
And now here I sit on the eve of my last day. Wow...just typing that is almost making me misty eyed. I've wanted to quit so many times that I can hardly believe that I am about to finish this. Again, no expectations, so until I am done, I know that there will be some hard work ahead of me. High's near 100 tomorrow and I still have a little over 20 miles to go. With the heat, we'll be leaving the house at 4:30AM and hope to get running a little after 5AM. If all goes well, I might be celebrating at lunch. So keep sending those positive thought and beautiful energy my way for happy legs and another cool breeze :)
May all beings be happy, may all beings be healthy, and may all beings be free from fear.
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