Thursday, 28 November 2013

WE CAN BE ALL BE HEROES JUST FOR ONE DAY -

MY FIRST COLUMN FOR THE MEDWAY MESSENGER !

HOW did this happen?

I don’t do running it’s a well known fact.

With short stumpy legs and a figure that says I like runny sauces rather than running races I was never going to be a vehicle built for speed.

So how did I come to be here, standing on the starting line outside Rochester Castle Gardens preparing to take part in this year’s Medway Mile?

The answer stands either side of me in their blue commemorative t shirts.

After missing out on 2012’s Olympic special due to miss clumsy clogs here having an altercation with someone’s outstretched leg and a hard laminated floor this year we swore we’d be back with a vengeance.

So here we are. The clocks ticking down and we’re raring to go , like I say running is not my thing but for one day of the year I’m more than happy to forgo that rule to spend an afternoon with my sons .

Due to work and school commitments ,we don’t always get to spend a lot of time together and I daresay in the next couple of  years the last person they’ll want to spend time with is their mum so I’m willing to suffer the annual ritual humiliation for the memory of a blooming good laugh.

And it’s not just us; all around there are generations of families and friends willing one another on and encouraging them towards the finishing line. It’s not about physical ability, it’s about taking part. There really is something quite heart-warming about a complete stranger congratulating you on how well you’re doing as you plod along Rochester high street in the wake of two energetic 10 year olds.

Medway doesn’t always get the best press with its reputation but it just goes to show that with a lovely friendly atmosphere we can all be heroes just for one day....

(Especially you, the lady who managed to prise my “scared of heights “son from the top of the massive bouncy slide!)

 

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