Priorities

Guess what  I didn't do last weekend?

I did not run the Chili half marathon that I had trained for all winter. The race that had me running 18k in -25C weather with winds that seemed to come straight from the North Pole. The race that had me running 20k in Florida to make sure I got the distance in. The race that I clearly listed as the first of my 2014 goals.

I'm not one to take goals lightly and I love putting a big check mark next to each big goal that I set.

So why did I skip out?

The weather?

Nope. It was a cold winter's day to be sure but it was nothing out of the ordinary and nothing I could not have run in.

Injury?

Nope. Thank goodness. My training runs went well. My body feels ok. Things are tight and sore from running in the snow for so many months but there are no problems going on that would keep me from the start line.

To be honest, I don't have one good reason for not running. I do however, have a few pretty good reasons that added up to be enough for me to feel that not running was better than running.

I had not signed up before we left for our trip. I wanted to make sure I would get the last few longs in run during our trip before I paid for the race. I did get them in but, when we came back from our two-week adventure, I did not think that adding another $100 to my credit card was a particularly sensible idea.

Right before we left for our trip I received an invitation to my cousin's baby shower. On the same day as the race but too early in the day for me to run, shower and get there before everyone left. While we were in Florida visiting New Smyrna Beach, the place where my family, including my cousins, had spent our summers, it suddenly seemed silly (and selfish) for me to say that I couldn't celebrate with her because I had to run. Plus, there are so few opportunities for family time these days...and so many races I can run.

I thought a lot about it. I agonized during last week's taper and went back and forth between running and not running.

Ultimately, I decided that the reasons not to run were bigger than the reason to run. And the only reason I could come up with to run was so that I could meet all of my goals for 2014. That, I finally decided, was not a good enough reason.

I did all the training. I ran all the long runs. I kept running all winter despite the never-ending cold and snow. I know I could have run the Chili half and added another medal to my collection. And sometimes the knowledge is all I need. So I didn't get the medal. Or the race photos.

Instead I got to spend a great day with my sisters, my mother, grandmother, aunts and cousins - celebrating our growing family and the ties that hold strong through the decades.