Marathons and Motherhood

As I have mentioned before, it is marathon training season. That's my excuse for being absent from the blog. (That and the bronchitis/flu/plague that I had last week.) Anyway, I have frequently associated marathon training to being pregnant and running a marathon to giving birth. I wanted to share my thoughts here because it is taking up so much of my time.

Both marathon running and becoming a mom start in similar ways..a drunken night of indiscretion... no, really. For some it is something that they always wanted to do and finally get up enough nerve, for some it is the support and coaxing of a spouse. Whatever the case, as soon as you agree to it, you start to think, "uh oh, what have I done?" You spend the next months going from super excited to seriously questioning your sanity. You start to see what your body is capable of and you insist on odd food. Some days are good days, and you feel great. Other days are just plain bad. By the end, you just want it to be over. You have had it, and "the big day" - circled in red on your calendar- can't get here soon enough.

After waiting what seems like forever, the big day arrives. You are filled with excitement and a bit of nerves. If it's your first, you are worried about what to expect even though you have read everything you can get your hands on. If it's your second, you know that each can be different and you wonder if you will experience the same things you did the first time. In the beginning, things are quite good. You think to yourself "this is not so bad, I can do this". By the end, you are cursing your spouse and telling anyone who will listen that you are NEVER DOING THIS AGAIN!! Then...you reach the end...and you have a smile on your face...and you have such a sense of accomplishment even though EVERYTHING hurts. For some people, the whole ordeal is over in a matter of a few hours and they look no different than when they started. For others, it takes what feels like forever and they look like they have been tortured. Some can't make it on their own and need medical assistance. Whatever the case, each comes with its own war story that you will share for the rest of your life.

When the pain has subsided and things start to return to normal, you start to remember only the good parts. The amnesia kicks in and you start to think that maybe you can do this again. Then, the whole process starts again. At the end of the marathon you receive a medal that you can show off proudly to all of your friends. At the end of childbirth, you have a beautiful baby who you can show off to all your friends. The difference is, that with children, you also get to forever cherish moments like these...