On Winning the Lottery (Again)

In summer 2013, I introduced my marathon training and fundraising by sharing: "After a fiasco of a registration process, I was lucky enough to "win" an entry to the 2013 Chicago Marathon; I just hope the next time I win a "lottery" it means that I've won money, not that I have to pay a large sum of money (and in order to run 26.2 miles, to boot!)." 

So now that I've "won" the Chicago Marathon lottery again in 2014, I'm not sure whether that makes me unlucky-- the only lotteries I've one require paying money to run absurd amounts of miles-- or lucky -- strangely enough, I actually enjoy running those miles enough to want to pay it!

I'm going with lucky. And I'll tell you why I'm feeling so grateful to be so lucky to be running the Chicago Marathon for Team Taller de José for the 3rd time in a row. 

1. I just really enjoy running! Yes, there are days when I I'm sore and tired and don't want to go to

See, I just really
enjoy running!

bed by 9pm so that I can get up before the sunrise the next day to run 3+ hours. But most often, I enjoy logging the miles, whether it be on Chicago's beautiful lakefront path (another thing I'm grateful for) or through the hills of the Tuscan countryside (more on that in another blog post!). I enjoy finding my pace, falling into a rhythm. I love filling the miles with conversations with my running buddy, with time to let my mind wander and think creatively, or with space to just let my mind be quiet-- a rarity in the busyness of life. 

2. Getting in via the lottery system gives me the opportunity to run on behalf of Taller de José, the non-profit where I have been working for the past three years. If you haven't hear me share about Taller de José yet, it is a unique community resource center located in Chicago's predominantly Latino community called Little Village. I say "unique" because we don't know of many other places that offer the service of accompaniment, in which we walk with individuals and families emotionally, spiritually, and physically to assist them in addressing any obstacles or difficulties they may be facing. Every day, I am in awe of the strength of the men and women who walk through our door, asking us to walk with them, and in awe of our staff (whom we call "compñeras") who respond to that call to accompany them. 

I'm so grateful for all the support and all the friends
who've joined Team Taller  for a full or half marathon.

3. Training for a marathon as part of a team enables me to be a part of a community of runners (into which I've recruited anyone I know with even a mild interest in running, and  this year my running buddy has joined the team too!). The ways in which we accompany one another as we work towards our common goal remind me of the importance of accompaniment. Accompaniment isn't just for the staff and clients at Taller de José; we all need a companion or two on our own journeys!

If you are curious to hear more about our current work at Taller, I invite you check back (or subscribe to get updates) over the next two months as I write about the mission, my experience of working there, and the connections I see between Taller de José and my marathon training. If you can't wait that long, you can visit Taller de José's website here or visit some of my posts from previous years (if you haven't been lucky enough to read them yet ;)). As always, thank you in advance for your prayers, encouragement, and support of Taller de José, and for humoring my efforts to make my life and work interesting to read about!