No Off Season...for dads

There is nothing like being in New York for the holidays.   The Christmas tree is being lit, the stores are flooded with people from all fifty states, and the bustling streets smell like roasted peanuts!  I love it!  Well, my boys wanted to go downtown as usual to catch some Black Friday sales.  I really did not mind because I like the never-ending action of the city.  My oldest wanted to go to the NBA store.  It is a fantastic store full of NBA jerseys, posters, and basketballs.  He walked in the store and it was if he forgot why he was there.  "Son, do you know what you want?", I asked.  "Umm...no!  Well, I think I want to look for some Wizards jerseys or shorts!"  They did not have them.  So he didn't know what to do.  So we're walking...and walking...and walking.  I could tell that he was a little unsure also because he had to use his money.  I know when I have a little pocket chan...

"I gotta feeling...that tonight's gonna be a good night!"   These are the words by Black Eye Peas I heard as I triumphantly jogged across the finish line.  I wish I could upload the video of the crossing (Yes, I had my iPhone in hand recording the whole thing!)  During the last 1/4 of a mile, with an excrutiating pain in my ankle and now heavy fatigue, I spoke into my now sweaty phone, huffing and puffing, and now jogging across the line.  I no longer cared that my time was...long.  I could have cared less that many runners (ummm, make that thousands of runners) finished before me.  I was enjoying the moment.  The crowd was roaring, clapping and celebrating every finisher's triumph. God gave me the chance to run...a marathon!  26.2 miles worth or concrete!  Only 1% of Americans have done this!  I need to go get my 26.2 car magnet.  Joe English, Running-Advice.com. Copyright 2010.  Someone once told me that the maratho...

The pain began on mile 4.   I had to run 22 more grueling miles with this aggravating pain.  The first 3 miles were great -- the unyielding enthusiasm from all of the fans, the vigor of the runners, the electric atmosphere.  It was all there. And then came...that pain.  It was at the top of my right ankle.  I had never felt it before; not even sure where it came from.  My running partner cramped continuously throughout the race.  Pain.  As I had to stop and start, the pain from my ankle became progressively worse, so much so that it was more painful to start running again than the actual run.  Pain. Pain is everywhere.  If you talk with anyone for a bit of time, you can hear the joys and pains of their life.  My friend suffered a brain aneurysm.  Another colleague was in an unhealthy marriage.  Once to have it all only to lose everything and begin all over again...pain. To see your daughter on a great track to hav...

After consistent questioning and persuasions, I made the decision to run the MCM.  Training for this race was different for me.  I had been running for some years now- two miles here, four miles there.  Yet, I never really pushed myself to train.  Training takes consistency, determination and hard work.  From those three words, consistency was my challenge. I had to train...often.  Well... Steve was my running partner.  We trained together.  We ran together.  And after a while, we drew closer as friends...together.  I began to understand his running pace and he understood mine.  As we trained, running became more than just running.  It became more of a friendship.  I began to know more about him, his wife and family, and his interests.  He got a chance to know a bit more of my victories and challenges, my strengths and shortcomings.  But we ran together -- 5 miles, 8 miles, 10 and then 12....

The grueling race began.  One foot after the other running towards the finish line.  There were hundreds of fans along the side of the road early in the chilled morning with their children wrapped in coats.  I was well aware that there were places around the city where supporters were able to see the runners and encourage them on.  But screaming fans were everywhere.  EVERYWHERE!!!! There were thousands of people with blue, white, and pink poster signs rousing their favorite runners on.  There were marines dressed in fatigues dispersed throughout the race giving high fives; little 10-year old kids were passing out waters and Powerade to runners they did not even know.  In all honesty, there was never a half mile in the entire race that there were not screaming, bell-in-hand supporters....  Photo by John Miranda  "Come on! You can do it!" "Keep going!  Don't stop! "You got this!" "You were stupid enough to sign up for th...

It could not have been a better day to run a race than Halloween Day, 2010.  The weather was perfect a nice chill to the fall air; the runners were ready, and the atmosphere was electric.  I had been anticipating this day for months.  Yet, I did not always look forward to running a marathon.  In fact, I NEVER wanted to run a marathon. I had been running for a couple of years now.  I ran in the Marine Corps Marathon 10K race in 2008.  I watched the marathon runners prepare for their excruciatingly long run and thought to myself, "I ain't doing that." Well, a couple of my 'I ain't doing that' opposing friends, who ran the race last year, persistently coerced me to run it this year.  "Dijon, you're a runner!  You can do this!" "Dijon, just take the pace slow and you will finish."  "It'll be great!" Yadda yadda yadda.  I reluctantly said yes.  The problem for me was not that I did not think I c...

I was thinking about my boys and the things I have learned as a dad over the last couple of days.  Just thoughts... 1)  This takes work! 2)  I have to give my boys more credit than I do. 3)  I have to trust that they will put into practice what I teach them. 4)  They do listen to me. 5)  They often follow the examples that I do, whether good or bad. 6)  They are boys, not men; so I cannot give them a man's responsibility...yet. 7)  They are boys, not men; so I cannot expect to act like a man.  I have to allow them to be...boys. 8)  They know more than what I give them credit for. 9)  I need to speak to them in a calm voice...more often. 10) Freedom is often harder to give up than I expected...they are growing up and I have to allow them to. 11) I have to get more advice about how to raise them...I have never raised a ten year old and a six year old before.  Each day is new. 12) They do want to spend time ...