It's funny how one "little" event can carry so many little lessons, especially if we take the time to reflect and really dig into the experience.  I say this as someone who does NOT typically take that time.  So many other things vie for my attention that I very rarely - if ever - stop and just take in an experience.  The only reason I'm doing it now is because this race was such a goal and such a dream for such a long time that I'm milking every last ounce of happiness out of it.  Guess what?  That brings me to my second lesson from the 2017 Princess Half Marathon:  to just be.  And to be in the moment.

Leading up to this race, I was terrified:  terrified that somehow my training would fail me, terrified that I wouldn't make it 13 miles, terrified that I would be swept because my pace was too slow, terrified that I would injure myself, terrified somehow - some way - the money I paid would be wasted.

Truth?  I didn't enjoy training.  Not by a long shot.  Two+ hour runs for the last few weeks just didn't do it for me.  The were HARD.  And always in the back of my mind, I was worried about the race.

And then we landed in Florida.  Friday was the expo, and it was glorious!  The idea that in two days I was about to be a half marathoner was exhilarating!  But again, the focus was on Sunday, not Friday.  I enjoyed the expo, but I still wasn't fully "there," if that makes sense.  And then Saturday we spent the day at Universal - the home of Hogwarts and everything Harry Potter.  And yet I STILL wasn't *in* the moment there!

Now, don't get me wrong:  I enjoyed myself (I'm such an HP nerd!) and enjoyed everything Islands of Adventure had to offer.  But truthfully?  I was worrying about getting enough sleep, about waking up on time, about catching the shuttle, about the race, about my legs being tired before even started...  Guess what?  All those worries?  NONE of them came to fruition!  NONE!  And yet, the worries stole part of my joy...

Sitting in my corral, I was still allowing the "what ifs" and the future possible mistakes take over...  I mean, just look at these pictures.  The first is before the race began, before I learned my "lesson."  The second?  The second picture is somewhere between miles 2 and 3 at the gate to the Magic Kingdom.

Finally - FINALLY - I got it!  I was in Florida, running the race of my dreams, and I was going to DO IT.  I was running into the Magic Kingdom!  There was joy - incredible JOY - and I needed to soak up every last second!  And from that point, I did.  I did for the rest of the week.  And the mindshift - and the week - were absolutely truly magical.