The month kicked off with our company away day. Every year the whole company goes away for a day and evening of unleashing your creativity, bonding with your co-workers and sharing in new experiences.
As my first away day, I was rather skeptical of the whole event. Not really a fan of organized fun, I must admit it was a lovely time. It was good to spend time with my team outside of the office and to interact with other co-workers and meet new ones. Things have been hectic, but over those 24hrs I realized why we do it….its the people. Working for a company always comes down to the people that you work with, the people you surround your self with. May not always see it, but I am really lucky to be apart of my team, to work with such great and inspiring minds.
It was truly a wonderful day…. from learning to Up Our Elvis, to learning to walk it out, to the most interested spa, followed by dancing with Elvis. It was a great day out…the next morning on the other hand was a tad slow and sleepy.
Training for Berlin has not been the most ideal. I thought I was on the right track and I sorta was…but things went tits up 20 days before the marathon when I rolled on my ankle. To say that I was annoyed beyond anything is a complete understatement. I don't know what I expected. I am burning the candle at both end of the stick. Training for a marathon needs focus and dedication and right now I am a weekend trainer. My weeks have not allowed for an ounce of running so the only time I have in the weekend. That's not right and I am not pleased by this. The marathon meant the world to me so I am annoyed with myself, with things around me that I have distracted me. There needs to be a balance and I thought I had found it, but these last few weeks, months have made me question. If you cannot do the things that I are important to you…is what you are doing instead really worth it?!
There was no time to mop or to allow my ankle to recover as it was off to Brussels to conduct some training. Every time I travel and meet the network I am reminded that I am in a new company. I forget that I don't know this network as well as I knew my previous company. I miss that network. I don't miss the work, or the politics, but I miss the people.It always comes down to the people. People can make or break things. Lately its been the people that have been dragging me down, making me question things, distracting me from my vision.
Thankfully in this case the people made the trip. It was good to spend some time outside the office with a new team of people and get their perspective on things.
Sometimes when we step a way we get clarity on what is important. I am glad there was some downtime on this trip so I could get my ground back underneath me. The one thing it made me question was if I had been to Brussels before cause I certainly remembered going to the Eurostar lounge. Cannot for the life of me remember though and swore I hadn't been to Brussels before.
I was excited to come back from Belgium as it meant it was time to catch up with family!! With everyone who has recently moved away and living abroad there is nothing like family time. On Friday I went out with D and my dear uncle. This visit marked the third time I was seeing my uncle which is impressive given where we both live. We went to a local (to work) wine bar…Vagabond. It's one of my favorite places to go I must say as its such a great experience. You top of a card (kinda like an oyster) and then you go around a 'self pump' you wine. You can choose to have a taster or a proper glass. It something different and always makes for a good night.I don't get to see these two gentlemen often, but truly enjoy every time I do. We got into a very interesting series of conversation that evening; from life, to politics, to life again. What is important in life…working and 'making it' or finding someone you love and want to spend your life with? Something to think about. We certainly did have a long evening of catching up and discussion. It was a great evening and one that I will truly cherish always. The bond that is between us is on that can never be broken and each time we see one another I feel like we are closer and closer.
Its been truly great seeing my family these last few weeks. Just what I needed to get my head in the game for the marathon especially as I couldn't train anymore. They've reminded me to just enjoy! Life is too short.
Speaking of the marathon….…After years of dreaming, months of training and lots of fingers crossed….it was finally time to run my first marathon.
You would have thought that after the last two attempts and especially after breaking my ankle and the surgery I would have hung up my running shoes, but no. It made me want it even more. I was disappointed in myself that I didn't train as I should have, but sorta pleased as I think that is why I stayed injury free (relatively speaking). I stayed out of my head (for the most part) and listened to my body. I cut back on speed and for once was "smart" about my training. Berlin wasn't about speed, it was about enjoying the race. My first marathon :-) And that is exactly what I did :-)
Going to the expo was absolutely amazing and one of the best experiences EVER! The massage was a bit interesting and I will likely not opt for that experience again, but roaming around the grounds really pumped me up and made me more than ever want to finish and cherish the experience.
I was pleased that I did an abroad marathon as it took the pressure off. I had all I wanted, good tunes, new shoes (which I broke in, but could have broken in more), and my best friend…what more could you want as a support system.
We ended up going a couple of days early which was good cause it gave me the opportunity to disconnect from work and settle in. Also gave us a chance to explore the city a bit. Berlin is not like the other European cities…you forget how young the city actually is and what it has gone through over the last 100 years. It was remarkable to walk around and hear the history of the city. It also made me rather excited to run and explore the city some more :-)
It was a new experience for me. Running not photographing the marathon. I did have a little dilemma as Shalene Flanagan was running (and going for the American Record). What to do?!Thankfully we were staying close to the start, so we walked up. We ended up going via the start line which cleared up my dilemma. We stopped and watched the elite runner and commentators. Of all the marathons I have watched, cheered, photographed…never have I even got to see the start live. I have seen it on TV, but never up front and personal.
I am glad that we stopped as watching the elites, listening to the music, and watching the commentators (one of which happened to be a childhood favorite Katarina Witt) really got me pumped to run my own personal 26.2 adventure through Berlin.
Once the gun went off and all the top runner ran by I bolted to my section (thankfully I was in the waaaaay back).
The race was truly incredible. I know this sounds odd and you likely don't believe me, but I had a lot of fun running the Berlin marathon. Honestly one of the best experiences I have ever had.
I was scared beyond anything when I started, but made sure that I took in everything around me. For 26.2 miles I soaked in all the atmosphere, enjoyed the music, the food stops and even enjoyed a wee little dance by the side of the road with some ladies to a rocking live band.
The moment I gave up going for time…I was focused solely on enjoying myself. That said, I did keep calculating my time based on my pace, etc. Once I hit the half marathon marker that is when my body started to shut down. I couldn't believe that at 21k I was only half way….blimey how would I do that all over again is what repeated through my mind!! But I kept charging forward, determined more than ever not to stop (unless for food or a dance) and to finish.
What got me through the streets of Berlin were certainly the people, the fuel station (with a lovely hot tea), music and taking photos. It's amazing…but taking photos can get me through almost anything…and it certainly got me through 5 hours of the marathon.People always say…its the last .2 miles that will test you and in my case it was the same. At the 40km checkpoint I was in a real battle with myself. I just wanted it to be over. The pain was kicking in, my arms felt like they were 20lb potato sacks, my stomach was hurting and I was all around in agony. We were in the city centre and with every corner I was hoping to see the finish and was deeply sad when I didn't. There was a moment when I was really to bow out…was nearly convinced that 41km was enough and I should be proud of that. That moment lasted for about 2.2 seconds…I wasn't coming all this way to not cross that finish line. I was going to do this and had sub-5 in my grasp. That moment of destitution though did cost me as I crossed officially with 5:01. Once I saw the finish line I dug in and tried to find everything within me to have a strong finish, but I couldn't break the 5 hour line.
It felt amazing to cross that finish line. But once I did all I wanted to do was to find my best friend so we could eat. That is all I could think about the last 2 hours of the race. I felt great up until the point I stopped. That is when all the pain kicked in. I managed to walk back to the hotel, but after an optimistic bath….it went downhill. I took a 10 minute nap that lasted for the evening :-)I am glad that I had the support network that I did for this race. I was sad however that I hadn't had a call or anything prior to the race from my family. I shouldn't be disappointed, but I was a little down. What counted I suppose were the congratulations post race. As they say…something is better than nothing.
Sunday evening was a rather chilled one as I had not capacity within me to leave my bed. Barely had the capacity to eat the room service we ordered. I am in awe of those runners who you see walking around and in the restaurants & bars post race. Maybe next time, but for my first there was no leaving my room.
The next day I was sore and although I was walking like a penguin, nothing was going to stop me from exploring the city. We took the hop on/ hop off to spare my legs and I am very pleased by that decision as walking was getting us NOWHERE!It was remarkable seeing the city for a second time. Taking the bus post race was actually the better way around. I am glad that I ran not really knowing where I was. I was able to appreciate listening to the history the second tour around the city.
The history of Berlin is unique and you can see the influence of the post war and the west/east divide until now. Really amazing how the city changes East Berlin vs West Berlin and the influence of the Americas, Brits and Russians.
It was an incredible weekend in Berlin. I was lucky with the weather (especially on Sunday and I have the tan lines to prove it), the blessings of friends nears and far, and for my travel partner and crime. Could not have done this weekend without you :-)
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| Thank you Berlin! This will be a weekend I will always cherish and never forget! |