You are never alone- Together

Today I ran the ¼ Marathon of Rotterdam, I did it!
Now I be able to thick another box, celebrate my success of another achievement in my continuous search for improvement, just because I can!
Apart from this experience of the last 7 month, were I had trained far less than planned and having bought running shoes a few hours before the race, the event was amazing! So many people, so many stories and one passion.

But something else grabbed my awareness and consciousness today, let me tell you about that. In the ¼ marathon section 15.000 heroes were running supported by almost 1 million fans! While running from time to time I was focused and not fully aware of every supporter, but they were amazing. Oh yes, in my condition it was not a piece of cake and when the excitement had gone and the adrenaline boost had vanished, it was hard working, especially when the sun awoke intensely. Two times a lady encouraged me by shouting my name, from my tag, from the pavement. Two women, strangers, connected for that moment and it helped, they pulled me trough, giving me energy, persistency, to move on.

1 mile from the finish I passed a young man, mid twenty, almost walking, in despair. I turned my head towards him, looked in his empty eyes and read his tag.
“Come on, Niels, Come!”, my voice, incisively, accompanied with a firm swing of my hand. Niels, looked up, his eyes fired up and within 2 seconds he sprinted next to me.
“how far? 4 miles?”, he gasped.
“More than 5, come on”.

My energy faded away slowly and Niels, in his red shirt gapped me, bit by bit. Now, he looked over his shoulder, 1 second we starred to each other.
“It’s around the corner, a couple of yards, go ahead.”

The last 500 yards were heavy, but I could not lose, could not quit. All my loved ones kept me strong, here in Rotterdam. The banners of the finish line were escorting me in.

Here, I realized, that in life one need from time a gentle push in the back, a hand on the shoulder or just a word. Everybody can have a week moment, losing sight of a clear purpose, a dot on the horizon. But certainly you do not have to do everything on your own. Only to realize that we have beloved people, family, friends or colleagues being out there for us, makes us stronger. We can strive for goals and achievements, but who says we have to do it all alone, all by ourselves?

So I’d like to end by thanking and showing my gratitude, respect and appreciation to all hero runners of the Rotterdam Marathon, the organization, the many volunteers and the million of amazing supporters to make this event a success! Be blessed and celebrate this success!

~ Every successful individual knows that his or her achievement depends on a community of persons working together ~