I know this blog is dedicated to my training efforts while also juggling the responsibilities of being a Husband, Father, employee, friend, etc... So I promise, I'll get around to that part. But first, a little perspective.
Nine years ago today I was in Northern Virginia conducting employee education meetings for one of our clients. Jenn was with me, but sleeping in at the hotel room. As I got ready to start the first meeting of the day, walked by an employee's cubicle. He was listening to the Howard Stern show and I overheard something about a plane flying into one of the World Trade Center towers. Nobody knew much at that point and Howard was speculating about it being a small private plane. And with that I dismissed the news and went about my business. I conducted the meeting and emerged an hour later. Why nobody had come in and stopped us to tell us about what was happening is beyond me, but at that time I think it still seemed unreal to just about everyone. When I came out of the meeting, we went over to one of the TV's in their break room and tried to absorb what was happening. I don't think that either tower had collapsed yet, but both were burning. My first thought was to go back to the hotel and see Jenn.
Due to the blackout shades, she was still sleeping when I got over to the hotel. I told her what was happening and we turned on CNN to watch the coverage. We just sat there for a little while, not sure what to do or what was going on. Eventually we checked out and I went back to my client's office. We were still in a state of uncertainty about the scope of what was happening. It was decided that there would be no more meetings that day and then I had to figure out how to get from Reston, VA back to Baltimore. As we were figuring out what to do, the receptionist came over to me and said my Mom was on the phone. You see, the cell towers were overwhelmed in Northern Virginia due to the plane that had flown into the Pentagon. So I couldn't call her and she couldn't call me. At the time I was travelling all the time, so Mom had no idea whether I was in the air or on the ground. She had called my boss who had told her where I was and gave her the number. Then she called their office and got me. Relieved that I was on the ground and in the area, I told her that I'd call when I got home. But that was the real trick, how to get home. The rumor was that all the bridges in the DC area had been closed. So we had to take a detour about an hour north of DC, through Frederick, to get home to Baltimore. It was a beautiful day for a drive, but that was about the only thing beautiful about that day. We made it home and, like everyone else, spent the rest of the day watching the coverage and dealing with the fact that we had just experienced one of the defining moments of our generation.
This morning, as I drove my son to his first soccer game, I realized that 9/11 was never something that my children had experienced, but that had shaped the world they live in now. I realized that one day I would have to tell the story of where we were when it happened. That I might have to explain how different the world was before it happened. It is a solemn day for those of us who lived through it and we will never forget those who lost their lives both on that day and in the aftermath.
How does this relate to training for a triathlon? Simple, whenever I encounter a difficult hill on the bike, a run that is really kicking my ass, a swim set that I really don't want to do, I remember, and I gain strength. It doesn't have to be remembering those who died in 9/11, Iraq, or Afghanistan, it just has to be a remembrance of someone who can't climb that hill, make that run, or do that swim. That memory will give you strength and you'll realize that you're just bitching about something that those people, alive or dead, wish that they could do. And as you think about that, the pain in your legs, your lungs, your arms, goes away. And before you know it, your workout is done and you feel thankful that you have the ability to do it.
Remember.
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