My injury made me find the joy in running again.

I love running, I love the feeling after a good run. When I first started cross country it opened up my competitive side of running and soon I wanted a state medal. I wanted to place top five at all my meets. I wanted other runners to see me as competition. And I was determined to make that happen. The summer before my sophomore year I ran over a hundred miles. The beginning of the season I was leaving people in the dust. I felt on top of the world. That came to a sudden halt when the arch in my foot fell due to unsupportive shoes. It hurt to even walk. I was furious that one small thing got in my way. So, I kept running on it, I tried to hide it, I wasn't going to let this stop me. The first meet of the season came around and I never ran so slow and in so much pain in my life. My coach then made me sit out a week. I thought it was the end of the world if I miss just one week of practice. Due to running on my hurt foot so long it strained the muscles in my hip and soon I was in constant pain while running. I was desperate to heal my hip in time for districts and state. I tried everything. Ice baths after every practice, heat packs on the muscle, many painkillers, and I even tried to convince my parents to let me get a cortisone shot just to take away the pain. My hip still did not heal for districts, but I ran anyway because I wanted a chance at a state medal. At the district meet, I made it to state, barely, in the last 800 of the race I had to pass three people to qualify, I managed to do that. But I was not happy with how I ran, because that race was miserable for me, and I thought I ran horribly. When the state meet rolled around I knew I wouldn't medal, I knew I wouldn't even run in the top half of the race. My hip slowed me down so much. I was angry that everytime I ran I wanted to cry from frustration and pain. I was angry that the joy of running was taken away from me because I didn't rest my hip enough. So as I ran at the state meet I didn't even feel the need to try. I knew I ran a bad race. Everyone told me I was so strong for making it through the race injured, they told me I was still a great runner. But I didn't believe them because in my mind I was a bad runner. I hated that feeling. I hated that season. Running used to be somewhere I could escape my problems. Now it was something I almost dreaded, and I missed the feeling I got after a good run. 

I know that if I would have just rested my hip wouldn't be injured. And sometimes I look back at my season and I still feel sad. But I also look back and realize how selfish I was. I was so focused on my own problems that I didn't realize the team I had beside me every step of the way. I didn't realize the coach who was there every time I wanted to quit. Multiple times during the season he told me I would come back from this. And then I didn't believe him, but now I truly do. Because this set back has shown me, sometimes you may be the best at something, but if you let one little obstacle get in your way, you won't be successful because all you will see is that obstacle and not the good that can come out of it. And the good that came out of my obstacle was the amazing team who was there for me and the new determination to run without the worry of being the best at a meet or on my team. To just run because I simply enjoy it. My injury showed me how much I miss the joy of running. And somewhere in my need to be the best and to beat my last time I lost the joy of running. And now I'm determined to find it again.

- Anonymous