Success is Sweet!

I have been training since the beginning of the year for a half marathon, and two days ago I was finally able to put all my preparation to the test.  I ran the Hobble Creek Half Marathon (13.1 miles) in 2:12.  I was hoping to finish in 2:30 when I first started training, and then as time has passed this year I have gotten faster.  After my last training run I thought I might be able to finish in 2:15 to 2:20, so when I crossed the finish line at 2:12 I was so proud! I wasn't running with a watch or a pace group or anything, just going at a pace I was comfortable with.  I loved seeing family cheering me on and it made me want to go faster. I saw two of my sisters and my kids just after mile 10, and I knew Jacob would be waiting for me at about mile 11.5. It was a great feeling to be passing people during the last few miles of the race instead of being passed like I had been for the first half of the race.  It is hard to explain the feeling of satisfaction I still feel at having accomplished something that felt so big when I first decided to do it. 
After the race I was riding home with Jacob in the car and I had the biggest grin on my face.  I felt like a kid at Christmas who just got exactly what they wanted.  I still have that same grin when I think about how I felt finishing the race, passing two women who were in front of me coming down the home stretch, knowing that I had worked many long hours to prepare for just that moment of personal victory.  I didn't break a world record, or run the fastest time, but for me it was the fastest and farthest I had ever run.  That is enough for me, for now anyway!
I need to sign up for some other races soon so I keep my running momentum.  It is easier for me to be consistent with my running if I know I am training for something specific.  It is like that with all goals, and for me, success is sweet!