Marathons.

"Remember: it's a marathon, not a sprint"

If I had a nickel...

I have come to realize in normal human adult life (what I like to call this strange, post-college, pre-actual maturity that I currently reside in) that this is everyone's FAVORITE phrase to throw at you when faced with something challenging that takes a lot of time, energy, sanity, lost of hours of sleep, etc. And the more I repeat it to myself, the funnier it starts to sound to me.

Here's why:

1. Has anyone really considered JUST how long a marathon is? "Oh don't worry, it's just 26.2 miles vs. a 100 meter dash" - oh yes, thank you, I feel MUCH better! Hand over those weird goo packets & a sweatband, I'M JAZZED! #justkidding

2. The colloquialism also seems to imply that this amount of time allows you to compartmentalize, do a different task every day, check things off a to-do list one-by-one - except that in a marathon, you're basically just repeatedly running mile after mile with a differet song on your iPod. (Not that I've ever run one, but I imagine it goes a little something like that, mixed with the inevitable self-loathing that results from voluntarily running that many consecutive miles.)

3. In real sports, there are marathoners and there are sprinters. I was on the track & field team all four years in high school and have been watching these events in the Olympics for almost 20 years (yes, seriously, I'm old enough to have memories that are ALMOST, just almost, 20 years old...) and I have yet to encounter someone who does both.

Also, perhaps most importantly, we can't forget about all of those people who LIVE for marathons. It's their lifeblood. The people whose cars have "26.2" stickers on their bumpers and you just drool in envy over their superior athletic ability to your pathetic attempts on the treadmill (don't even get me started on those "100.4" people, or whatever...) To say "it's a marathon, not a sprint" seems to imply that A. I have to choose which one I like better and that B. somehow, one is preferable to the other during a particular timeframe.

Ok, I understand - I am picking apart a phrase that has made it into our vernacular and that most people don't think too deeply about before speaking.  But am I wrong or is this phrase simply meant to communicate a single word - "BREATHE?" All I am saying is that I prefer the simplicity that only obliges me to take a sigh in rather than choose a vein of a sport I no longer even participate in.

Life is a series of hours, a series of days, a series of life events that will make us both marathoners and sprinters at various times. We have to be prepared for both. And in both, the simple advice of "breathe" is always relevant. You are never too busy to take advantage of your vices (brownies, anyone?), to pick up the phone and call your best friend, or to get and stay organized about something you are incredibly passionate about achieveing.

There are crazy challenges to running both marathons and sprints. But even when life gets challenging, breathing is always easy. 

♥mb.