Well, here's to the comeback.
On the first Sunday after Easter, a tribe of parents congregated to watch whippersnappers run. It was the 2021 debut of the Healthy Kids Running Series. According to Bruce Springsteen, kids were born to run; however, there is the scare that our youth are transforming into Zoom zombies. Thus, the Healthy Kids Running Series... an organized chaos of children on the move.
Under a light rainfall and the glow of social interaction, children ran and parents cheered. Also, parents ran and children cried. Springtime satisfaction and sadness on a hot mess field. I loved every minute of it. From my 4-year-old literally running out of one of her shoes to kids running in the wrong direction to kids refusing to run to to a heroic Mom scooping up dog poop...this was community.
The next day I laced up. Inspired by the next generation on the move, I took off. Throughout much of the pandemic, I have run. I also have ate. And I have stressed. And then laughed. A vicious cycle of run, eat, stress, and laugh. On this particular morning, I simply enjoyed a Cambria City circuit. There was no crowd yet I had support. I was stroller running with that flash of a 4-year-old. Her shoes were kicked off and she sat pretty as Dad crushed a mile and a half with her onboard. I have strolled hundreds of miles with that stroller. Memory after memory of crushing miles and daughters' smiles.
All this running led me to the Johnstown Semper 5K. The Delta Sigma Chi Fraternity, hailing from the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, hosted this event. The 5K was connected to America's Fund, which supports injured military veterans and their families. My family supported my Dad fitness by standing near my 4-year-old's preschool to await my healthy return to road racing. I had not run in an official event since sometime in the long lost year of 2019.
And when I heard my cheering quartet - my wife, my mother, my two daughters - I felt a burst of appreciation. A simple sight and sound of what really matters. I descended into Stackhouse Park, appreciative of my family and the surrounding nature of my hometown. My 5K time did not matter, but I deemed it respectable for an eating, running, stressing, laughing Dad. I celebrated my finish by eating a sub. The sub was from a fundraiser so my consumption was neighborhood supporting nourishment.
The return of organized races has provided an April 2021 jolt. My hope is that there are more to come. That community members reunite on the road and the trail. That foot soldiers flock to local events to support good causes and promote outdoor recreation. That kids spend more time zipping down hills and less time zooming on the computer.
Happy Spring, Johnstown. Get outside and get on the move. You're on the clock.
