My marathon moment was over two weeks ago now and I have to admit to feeling rather forlorn. Yes it is delightful not having to worry about training and eating properly and training and drinking enough water and training and training. But I don’t think I had realised what an enormous chunk of my time and thought THE MARATHON had taken up.
The day itself was totally brilliant. I never thought I would be writing that but it really was. Berlin fully embraced the marathon. From the moment my sister and I stepped off the plane we were enveloped in enthusiasm and excitement for the event.
The whole route was dotted with live bands and make shift DJ booths in bus stops, with cheering crowds calling our names and giving much needed encouragement. Perhaps the most memorable sections though were when we had passed a particularly noisy crowd of spectators and suddenly it was quiet and all one could hear was the steady pad of thousands of feet running along peacefully.
Since I came home I‘ve been asked a lot if I now have the marathon bug. I’m not sure I will be doing another marathon but I am a convert to running.
Now that the race is out of the way I’m really looking forward to being able to run for pleasure, to whatever distance I fancy and as regularly as I am able. And I think my family is relieved to have more of my attention again!
On another note, I wanted to share a heart-warming story about common sense and community spirit from Great Bedwyn. There was great dismay in the village in June when the much loved bakery announced that is was closing.
Bedwyn has long been proud of its many amenities – train station, post office , shop and a proper bakery – and now it looked like one of these treasures was about to be lost. Not least of the worries was that Viv and Lorraine, the wonderful ladies who worked at the bakery and really are the heart of the village, would be out of a job. The whole community was very despondent.
Until Les and Kathy, the practical, kind-hearted dynamic duo that runs Great Bedwyn Post Office, came to the rescue. Almost overnight space was found in the post office for a bakery section, Viv and Lorraine moved in (and have added post mistressing to their many skills!), and the village audibly breathed a sigh of relief.
So it just goes to show that where there is a will, a man with DIY skills, and a bit of common sense, there will be a way that suits everyone.
Halloween Ball set to be spooktacular
