Searching For Allison

Dear friend(s) who have ever walked, hiked, or ran at Mill Creek Park (or ANYWHERE for that matter), I write this letter to you to make you aware. We must always be aware of our surroundings.  We must always pay attention to location, who we are passing, safe places, ways out of trails. Why?  To stay SAFE. Why am I just now writing this letter? Because until Monday, June 4, 2018, I have always felt safe and confident running by myself no matter where I am, but especially at Mill Creek Park.  Mill Creek, since discovering trails, has always been my go-to place to get away.  I love the beauty and peacefulness of the trail. I love the ability to run/walk/explore...to always find something new in a place I know and love so well. On June 4th, that safety and love was stripped from me. Monday, early afternoon, I headed out on what I thought would be the first of a plethora of summer runs on the trail.  Some runs would be solo while others would be shared wi...

A lot of time in society asking for help is looked down upon...but why? Don't we want to become the best us possible? Don't we want to be able to reach an end goal? In life, as often as we would like to go-it-alone, sometimes, it just isn't plausible. We need help from the day we were born to the day we die.  Sometimes we get overconfident and have some success in education, work, relationships, running, or whatever "it" is on the path we are on.  Overconfidence often leads to ignoring help.  However, at some point, we will realize we once again need the support of others to get us through our journey. How does this relate to me?  Because I NEED HELP!  I have been ignoring the signs for a long time.  I have danced around the topic, thinking I could make changes alone; however, that is simply not possible.  I need accountability; I need support; I need someone to celebrate victories with and be able to talk out any setbacks that will surely ...

Hi there!!!! It has been, what seems like, forever since I have last tickled the keys to write a blog. However, today it seemed timely to do so as I will be missing yet another event I signed up for:  The Pro-Football Hall of Fame Half Marathon.  In the past I would be devasted to miss such an event; however, I find myself calmly reading through everyone's posts about the last run before the big day, etc. As I realized there wasn't much emotion from my end, I started to reflect on the reason why. Here is what I have come up with. For a period of about five plus years, my name was synonymous with running.  That was all I did and all I cared about.  I cared about times, being fast, medaling, etc.  Every weekend was filled with driving and racing...driving sometimes over 2 hours to run only a 5k.  Once I transitioned to trails, I lost my love for the road, but running and I continued to have one thing in common: it was an escape...a means to get away......

Another year has flown by, and today is the last day of winter break! Life is funny, well, funny may not be the best word; however, I think we all can agree that the universe has an interesting sense of humor. This year, even though 3.5 months were running free, has been one of the best to date.  As we grow up and come into our own, we start to realize the truly important aspects of life, and we see how what is of most importance shifts due to life's circumstances, which is sometimes by choice, sometimes by force, and sometimes a combination of the two.  As stated in the birthday blog, 3.5 months of no running became a blessing in disguise, and surprisingly I really did not get that bent out of shape about it, but there is a reason for that....in place of running, a true relationship blossomed and has taught me so much about myself and the importance of people who truly have your best interest at heart.  Love is an amazing feeling, especially when it is pure, and...

Life is a beautiful journey.  Even when life is at its ugliest, there is beauty around every turn.  There are always new lessons to be learned, more love to be felt, more challenges to complete and more growing to do. 36 was perhaps one of the best years of my life.  36 brought me the following (abridged version...and in no particular order): ...a house (with awesome neighbors) ...Willow (my darling cat) ...my daughter growing and maturing...becoming a district champ at volleyball...and becoming a swimmer...following in my footsteps ...becoming closer with my family ...learning how to be (somewhat) independent.      I can now say I know how to mow the lawn all by myself, keep a snow-free driveway, and rake     leaves ...learning about myself ...getting rid of toxic people in my life ...welcoming old friends back ...learning what it means to truly be happy One thing you may notice that is missing from above is ...

I am a mess.  My head has so many thoughts swirling around I don't even know where to start; I only know that writing helps ease those thoughts. All I do is question myself about so many aspects in my life and it is so hard to handle sometimes.  There are glimmers of reassurance, but often not coming where I need them to come from.  I feel ugly, stupid, fat, unwanted, unliked, unappreciated, and defeated in so many facets of my life I could just scream...but I don't, instead...I cry and I write. I try to be selfless, but honestly, it can be exhausting, but it is not like me to be selfish or say how I truly feel, no matter how torn up I am on the inside.  Some people have no clue about what I carry around inside my heart and mind because 98% of the time I wear a smile.  Some may claim to know, but I can pretty much guarantee that I am withholding something, because I don't like to make waves, I don't want people to feel how I feel, and sometimes I am just fla...

August 1-30 were good days for me. I finally felt like I was getting my running groove back, and even started incorporating some trails into my running to be able to increase my mileage and time on my feet.  My longest run topped out at a bit over nine miles last Sunday on the trails of Millcreek. I love Millcreek. Those Sunday miles spent with nature and without music were often therapeutic with whatever else was stressing me out during the week. With the above being said, I am very proud that I went from over 80 miles in the month of July to over 110 miles in the month of August, with the two previous months off due to my leg injury. ...and then comes August 31... As I was getting ready for work I ran smack into the couch.  I know, I know, we have all done this and 98% of the time it is not a big deal, and at first that is what I thought, until I realized the pain was not subsiding.  I sat down on the couch and noticed my toe was on quite an angle, all swollen, a...