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David Griffin on Running
Dave Griffin on Running
November/December 2009
For the Washington Running Report
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So many things to be thankful for . . .
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I never thought I would be running in Marietta, Ohio. In fact, I'm not sure I had ever heard of the place until last May when my daughter, Katie, told me the NCAA Division III National Track and Field Championships would be held there.
Several weeks before the meet, she asked me if I would join her and go watch it. After struggling to decide whether I could be off work on short notice, I came to realize that it was an opportunity not to be missed---three days watching a National Track and Field Championship, yet even better, a long weekend of quality time together.
Running is something we have shared since she was in middle school. I remember our early runs around the neighborhood after she first became interested in the sport and how she would share the secrets of her life while we ran. At a time when the divide between a father and a daughter tends to widen, we were growing closer.
In more recent years, we have shared each other's goals and victories, cried through disappointments and laughed at the peculiar nuances that running brings to life. We have shared a running journey that, despite the nearly 30 years that separate our births, has been pretty similar. And now, that journey led us to Marietta, Ohio.
As we watched the preliminary races, both of us understood that every runner qualified for the privilege to race there and we also knew the commitment and the diligence that each one possessed. It is still so sudden how in the span of just a few minutes, some dreams can die while others move forward, only to be tested on another day.
The next morning we woke up early to go for a run and explore the streets of Marietta. We found the town quaint and friendly, but I couldn't help feeling a bit sad as we ran by a row of abandoned storefronts. Marietta, like so many other parts of our country, has seen better times.
The Muskingum River has a nice trail that we checked out and we continued along the riverfront where we found a riverboat long since abandoned and a railroad bridge with the tracks gone. On the other side, an old man fished from a crumbling foundation.
We were having fun discovering---together---interesting things about Marietta's rich history. We paused to read monuments that filled in the details, such as, Marietta was the first permanent settlement outside the original thirteen colonies and during the Civil War era residents offered troops to the Union and also provided shelter as a part of the Underground Railroad.
Afterward we took a quiet walk to get a closer look at the town. We snapped some pictures and we bought gifts for the people we love. Everywhere we went the townspeople seemed vibrant and happy, which seemed in contrast to the old, abandoned box office and other vacant buildings. And yet, as we talked to the people of Marietta, it seemed like we were the only ones who noticed. There was no sign they realized that their town was in decline.
The last day of the meet was the most exciting. We watched all the finals and got caught up in the exhilaration of each event as the runners poured down the homestretch. We saw the pride on their faces as they stood on the podium and we both wondered what winning a national championship would be like.
Since she and I are both distance runners, the distance events were our favorites and the men's 5,000 meters was the last event. Many of the runners had already competed in other races and this was held during the heat of the late afternoon. In the final laps, a small pack held on to the pace before one runner finally pulled away.
The weekend was over too soon, and before long we were driving back home.
I feel like I found a kindred spirit in Marietta. Like the town, I'll never revisit my peak potential, and, from all appearances, it won‘t either. And yet, the people there set an example I would like to follow. They seem happy to relish in the promise that today brings, despite whatever limitations there might be. They are proud of their history and seem at peace knowing it is still a part of them.
There was a stark contrast between the contentment in the town and the hunger on the track. The runners were unsatisfied, longing to find something inside themselves that would propel them beyond any place they had risen to before. Success was followed by elation, failure by a mix of disappointment and a resolve to do better the next time.
I guess we both left Marietta with something we needed. For me, it was perspective. For her, it was inspiration. Distance runners need both those things, don't they? And yet, seldom do you find them together.
So, as I reflect on my own limitations, she will share inspiration. When she is struggling to keep her perspective, I will offer mine. And together, we'll keep exploring new places as we continue our own running journeys and relish the times when those journeys intersect, like they did in Marietta, Ohio.
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