I joined a group!
It struck me yesterday morning. After our training run most of the group went out for coffee. There was talk and laughter and serious conversation. Some of it was about running, but most of it was just us getting to know each other. There we were, about two dozen men and women: doctors, lawyers, salesmen, school teachers, stay-at-home moms, college students, plumbers, even a marine on leave from Afghanistan. Two dozen completely random people who have no business being in a group together. Except that we all want to run.
Each week I get to know my running buddies a little better. There's N, the former triathlete, now my regular Thursday buddy. She used to be a buyer for Macy's and now she's a SAHM with three kids. She has this really low raspy voice and it turns out she has a degenerative disease in her vocal cords. Her husband also travels a lot, so she could totally relate when my husband was in Japan.
C is a minister's wife. It turns out our daughters are in the same dance class.
"So that's why you look so familiar!" we both exclaimed.
Her son is autistic, so we traded special ed war stories.
J is another newbie runner. Her extended family has gotten seriously into running and they're all planning to run a marathon in Nashville next spring as a family reunion event. This week she brought her mom along and she told us funny stories about being a military wife.
Then there's P and K, both new moms and next door neighbors. K is loud and over-the-top and is always cracking us up. P is equally funny, although quieter. She is also my "fast" running buddy. I could have kissed her on Saturday when she started joking about wetting her pants while she's running. Here I thought I was the only one struggling not to pee her pants--only I was too embarrassed to say anything! Pretty soon the women were all in near hysterics comparing stories and sharing tips (sanitary napkins) and solutions (Kegels).
I joined a running group because I wanted to learn how to run. It turns out that I have joined so much more than that.
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