Silver Medal

This weekend, I won a silver medal—for running a 5K! Imagine that.

It’s just another amazing and unexpected consequence of my journey as a living donor, and now as a living donor “athlete” training for the Transplant Games.

Our area has been pelted with rain lately, and even on the morning of the race, the weather was questionable. Upon leaving the house, I decided that I would not run in a thunderstorm, but a little bit of rain wouldn’t hurt me.

The skies cleared as we approached the race site at a nearby mall parking lot. The course was relatively level, but as the sun came out the rain water evaporated in the 75 degree temperatures. The blacktop was giving off steam, making it difficult to breathe with the intense humidity. After the first circuit of the mall, I asked for two cups at the water station—one to drink and one to douse myself.

Since I lost over a month of training time with my ankle injuries and subsequent therapy, I was more concerned about finishing than going fast. To my surprise, I finished before several younger competitors and even some men, and came in second in the 50-54 female age group.

With less than two months to go until the games, my small success in this race and the unexpected prize will give me an extra boost to keep on running.

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