Sunday, December 26, 2010

Here or There or Anywhere

Later this week I will have to decide whether or I not I will be able to run my goal race, the Charleston Marathon. The small spot along my incision line continues to bleed a some and simply will not heal shut.

The Stubborn Owie
Today I bought some butterfly bandages and placed 4 of them over the injury as well as a hydrocolloid bandage to cushion the area from my socket. I wish I had done this sooner than now, but I am still learning about being an amputee and suppose I will for the rest of my life.

If I am unable to run on January 15, I have two other alternative races in mind: the Myrtle Beach Marathon on February 19 in Myrtle Beach, SC, or the Snickers Marathon in Albany, GA, on March 5. Of the two I am leaning toward the Snickers Marathon since it will give me additional time to train AND it is on my birthday. I have run the Myrtle Beach marathon in the past and would prefer a different race; the convenience of the location less than 2 hours from our house is the main drawing point.

It is disappointing to think about not doing this race after all the work - and dreaming - I have done to get there, but it has to all be put into perspective: I can run again when once I was hobbled in pain. It seems things do happen for a reason, but even if it is total chaos, we are tested and made stronger for the effort. It is not the place, but the doing that is the race.

And when I run it, it will be one of the greatest days of this one life. If I have to wait it will only be sweeter, this is the gift running has returned to me.
Posted by Richard Blalock at 10:52 PM

4 comments:

  1. AnonymousDecember 26, 2010 at 11:05 PM

    sending healing vibes your way man! take care!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Richard BlalockDecember 27, 2010 at 9:43 AM

    I can sure use 'em Karyn, things look a little better this morning so here's hoping.

    ReplyDelete
  3. IanDecember 29, 2010 at 6:13 AM

    You've got plenty of races ahead of you so if you have to shift away from Charleston to one of the alternates, this is OK. I'm sure you'll make the best decision for you and how you feel. Hang in there.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Richard BlalockDecember 29, 2010 at 9:51 AM

    Hi Ian,

    It's pretty much day-to-day now, this morning the leg looks good, no bleeding I can see, so I am thinking of giving it one more day off from running and trying it on Thursday. Feeling a little better about running Charleston but we'll see. If I can run Charleston it will be very slow and I might use it more as a training run and still run in March, at least this is what is on my mind now.

    As always, thanks to you, Karyn, and everyone for the support. These aren't just words, I can tell you it genuinely helps me work toward and achieve my goals.

    - Richard

    ReplyDelete

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