Wise Words

It's going to be fairly hectic over the next 48 hours - just off to pack my gear and make for Hexham......not sure whether I will be able to find Internet access there as it's in the middle of nowhere; come to think of it, is there electricity in Hexham?? - if so if this is going to be the last of the PRP's (pre-run posts; look, I don't know half the text abbreviations out there - lol - so to get my revenge I'm going to add one of my own!) I would like to share with you a good luck card I received from my sister; both the cover and the wording within. A sweaty Muhammad Ali was emblazoned on the front, with one of his many quotes on the front....

'I hated every minute of training, but I said, don't quit; suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion'

You are well within your rights to scoff at the over-dramatic nature of a line like this, but for me it is nothing short of inspirational. Whether you are looking to lose weight, get fit, run a half marathon, win a boxing world title, start a business, decorate a house; surely the concept of 'effort now leads to long term benefits later' speaks to us all? It certainly does to me, and I assure you that over the course of the Great North I will be having flashbacks of all those days leading up to this moment when times were hard, when training was tough, when the distance between where I was and where I want to be seemed so great. All those memories of what will contribute to a moment I will never forget. Although I don't speak from experience, I suspect that it will be worth it.

Inside the card was a message from Clare herself......

To Adrian, wishing you all the luck and success in the world! I am so proud of you! You have achieved so much on your personal journey!
Thank you for this tribute to Dad by running for the British Heart Foundation, this is also a tribute to the runners who ran in the name of their family or loved ones whose efforts helped Dad.

I think of myself as a pretty smart bloke, but I confess to never having thought of this. The money raised for the British Heart Foundation comes too late to help my own Dad, but in doing this I both honour him, honour the people who in the past raised money that did help him; and I take comfort that someone elses father will benefit from this money raised. I am confident that some of those someones will pay it forward, just like me.

So much happening to take inspiration from.......