A Lesson In Support From the Chicago Marathon
Even on the sidelines, you're a big part of the race
9:30 a.m.
A crowd is cheering outside my apartment.
Not for me, though I’ll take encouragement where I can get it. They’re cheering for the 53,000 people from 100 countries running through my neighborhood, near Wrigley Field, as part of the Bank of America Chicago Marathon. It’s a clear, cool, sunny day, filled with good energy: a sharp contrast from what the world has seen from Chicago lately, with immigration officers arresting people and brutalizing protesters.
I woke up to someone yelling WHOOOO!!! and assumed that someone was throwing a party. When I walked out of my complex, I saw hundreds of people who showed up to bring good vibes on a Sunday morning. I couldn’t help smiling. It’s a party, all right.
Vibes have been on my mind a lot: the energy I put into the world. Lately I haven’t put much out there as I build my life in Chicago. This is the easiest city I’ve ever lived in, and I hope to be here for a while. And yes, I know about winter. I’ll live. It’ll end. Life goes on. Since moving here in March I’ve done a ton of adjusting, especially to not being in broadcasting after a long run. I told my coworkers it’s like being a civilian after 25 years in Starfleet. Otherworldly, overwhelming, awe inspiring.
I think a lot of us can relate to the overwhelming part. Every day gives us more reasons to wonder when our neighbors will try to eat each other. The seeds of insanity are being sown with every asinine federal policy, every bald-faced lie, every act of cruelty. It’s why I consume much less news these days. One of my custom Focus settings on my iPhone automatically blocks all news notifications when I’m at the gym and on weekends. I call it “…Is Good News”.
(As in, “No news…”)
Life has been tough lately. Arriving in the winter, ending a 5-year relationship, giving up entrepreneurship for a job in a new industry, facing midlife, considering graduate school, and losing about 40 pounds of muscle & the strength that went with it within a few months of coming here. Life can really take a bite out of your ass — in my case, literally. My jeans used to fit so well… Still, I’ve begun to figure out how to move myself forward.
Which brings me to the marathon.
The legend behind these races involves an ancient Greek messenger running to Athens from the battlefield at Marathon, announcing the Athenian victory over the invading Persians. As the story goes, the messenger died soon after completing his task. History glorifies him as a runner who gained praise at the end of his run. Modern marathons, however, praise runners all along the race. I was moved this morning both by seeing people cheering and who they were cheering for. A woman pushing a special needs participant in a large stroller-type carriage, wearing matching baby blue outfits, smiling ear-to-ear. A man wrapped in a Mexican flag with a “Visually Impaired” sign on his jersey, wearing a shirt that read “Inmigrantes Unidos” (Immigrants United). People from every walk of life hoofing it in the bright sunshine, bracing for another 17 miles of stress.
And stress is the key word here. Words matter, and this word matters a great deal.
I bring up Brené Brown all the time, but her research shows that stressed is not the same as overwhelmed. When your situation feels beyond your capacity, that’s stress. When your situation is actually more than your nervous system can biologically process, that is overwhelm. You can tell by your ability to ask for help. If you are so zonked that you lack the mental capacity to figure out what you need, you’re overwhelmed. In that situation there’s really only one cure: stop. Let everything go, stop doing anything and rest. Not read a book, not watch a silly movie, not even talk it out. Stop. Breathe. Power all the way down until you are ready to move on.
When you’re overwhelmed you feel like nothing will help. And you’re right. So, do nothing. That actually will help.
That’s why this marathon is so uplifting on this Sunday morning. If I tried to run a marathon right now the physical challenge would quickly overwhelm me. I’d have to stop. But these lunatics? Running 26.2 miles at dawn for funsies? More power to ‘em, especially because we’re here to cheer them on along the way. Bottles of water and orange slices aside, they draw strength from our energy — our good vibes — and they persevere. That ancient Greek marathoner probably died because his task overwhelmed him without relief. But people can do amazing things not just in spite of stress, but because of it. And support can keep people reasonably stressed, instead of totally overwhelmed.
Besides, if these runners did not put themselves in a stressful situation, there would be no reason to cheer. No reason to connect. Imagine running the Chicago Marathon with no one watching. Just footfalls and heaving breaths and pouring sweat and your thoughts for company. You might as well be running by yourself. Nobody gives a damn, so what’s the point? Hell, why even finish? You could keel over, and no one would bother to pick you up. Why go on?
…until you hear the cheering. The hoots and hollers (which are still going on outside my home) from strangers who showed up just to love on whoever needed it. And your brain gets a break when it sees a silly sign along the route, just a split second of relief that reduces the cortisol in your blood and eases the lactic acid in your muscles. Just enough to keep going. And then another person cheers for you. They don’t even know you, but they’re clapping for you. “Keep going!” they say. “Don’t quit! You’ve got this!” More relief.
You keep running and see an even sillier sign, kind of dirty! A big smile. A big boost. You run on. A dog barks happily, wagging its tail as if it’s ready to go with you all the way. A heartwarming connection. You briefly forget the pain. You run on.
We are not strong enough to get through life’s marathon on sheer will. We draw strength from strangers whose humanity compels them to cheer for good things. I don’t need to know you to care about you. If you’re committed to this race, I’m committed to helping you run. So often we fake ourselves out of doing a good thing because odds are too long, there’s too much opposition, it’s too late, you’re not enough, etc. We judge ourselves for being on the sidelines, or worse, we judge others for not getting more involved. But if you don’t know where you can help, find something to cheer for. The sidelines are a part of the race, not apart from it.
Do what I did. Step outside your door, and cheer someone on. Anyone. Just cheer.
Who or what are you cheering for right now? Let me know in the comments!
I’ve been away from The Night Light for months now, trying to figure out what to do with it. I think I’ll use it to, among other things, cheer you on. Maybe with just a few sentences of encouragement or a quick insight. Occasionally it’ll be a longer piece like this. And maybe it’ll just be a simple WHOOOO!!!
We have a long, hard run ahead of us: part marathon, part relay race. The price is nothing less than the future of humanity. Sadly, some of us won’t make it across the finish line. And unfortunately our opponents are willing to cheat, steal or even trip us up. Still, we’ve got an advantage. Unlike them, stomping down the course, we can hop on and off at will. Sometimes we’ll have the strength to run. Other times we’ll encourage our team while we recover. Either way, we’re moving forward together. My mission is to connect good people and help good things happen. It’s time to keep moving and make some noise. Are you ready?
Let’s run on and see what the end will be. Let’s give this old world a reason to cheer.
Go!
I’m cheering you on, Josh. :-)
I loved reading this. And I know how you feel. All the change, and the uncertainty. I came to the U.S at 17 from Peru. I lost my father in 2003 and could not go, hardest thing in my 25 years here. Took me 18 to become a resident, 23 to become a citizen. And I thought I made it, but no, these 2 years as a citizen have brought more trials than the the others combined. But GOD protects and provides and I am still here, giving my best!