From the beginning...

I guess the best place to start a story is right from the beginning. It was a warm June day in 1982 when a brand new baby entered the world. They named her Haley, 7-something pounds...Okay maybe that is TOO far back! Fast forward to my senior year of high school. Sixth period. TV Production. A friend convinced me to do something crazy. After years of being in the marching band I had quit and decided to branch out into other areas of extracurricular activity. I tried out for the school plays and received small roles. And then the crazy, I joined the TRACK TEAM. I was not, I am not a runner. My 6th period friend told me I'd be guaranteed a trophy at the end of the year if I joined. All my other trophies boasted "Principal's Honor Roll" or "Perfect Attendance." I wanted a SPORTS trophy, one to really cherish! So I agreed. Thankfully our track team was an "anyone is welcome" team and didn't require any actual running ability! I joined the team and began our afternoon runs. My teammates pushed me hard when all I wanted to do was quit. I stuck it out though. I raced the 800 meters. I lost. A lot. Every single race to be exact. And not just lost, I'm talking DEAD LAST. But I had a BLAST. My coaches praised my determination, my unwillingness to quit even when everyone else would have. And at the end of the year I got my treasured trophy. Most Dedicated Runner. I like to joke that means I "came to every race and carried the coaches bag."

I graduated high school and unfortunately my running fell to the wayside. Sure I tried a few times to run with friends in college but it wasn't something I made a priority and it wasn't long before running became merely something I'd done in high school.

I'm now a Grad school graduate, married for coming on six years, with two wonderful boys. And I'm trying it again. I'm letting that 6th period friend rejoin my thoughts and I'm giving it a 2nd go around. After two pregnancies and a thyroid condition have caused me to climb my weight up into the mid 180s I needed to change. My husband and I had a miscarriage this past December. I decided when New Years Resolution time rolled around that I wasn't going to let another year pass unhealthy. I joined Weight Watchers and dropped 10 lbs in the first 5 weeks. Amazing. But just losing the weight isn't enough for me. I want to be fit, I want to run. After years of spouting that "I only run when chased" I've decided to take up running...without the chase.