Day 3,699—Summer Stories II—

Today, I was dehydrated again and called my run early. I also forgot to turn my watch on for the first 4 minutes of this run. I am thinking now if my 200-mile plan isn’t going to work for this month because of the 9-hour race I signed up for on June 22. I still want to do it but now I am not sure logistically how it is going to work. I am also excited about the possibility of running around the Grand Canyon in November. More to come on that but I will definitely make an awesome video if it ends up happening. I love the Grand Canyon, and I haven’t been there for years.

Yesterday, when I went to pick up my children from daycare, my 14-month-old son walked up to me, giggling as he gave me a hug. He has been walking on and off for the past month, but last week he started walking everywhere and now he is roaming the floors on his feet, throwing his head back, and having the best time.

20 years ago, even though I had graduated from high school and was 18, my dad insisted that I not stay out later than midnight, so my summer after graduating from high school was odd. Most people I knew were moving away and it was the last time I would end up seeing many of them. I remember everyone I knew throwing parties and celebrating their child’s graduation. Yet, this was a contentious point in my family. My dad told me he didn’t want me to get a degree in English, so I had lunch with our family pastor at a Mexican restaurant. I remember Pastor Joe telling me that I was allowed to pursue the degree I wanted. I was like, “No duh.” Thanks for clearing me of sin for wanting to get a degree in something I care about.

But, I am not trying to be critical; just tell the story. Joe was nice and paid for lunch. I still remember thinking that I should always pay for a meal if I invite someone out. My dad was confused by all the conservative propaganda he consumed about college and how they are tricking kids into getting degrees they cannot use. I remember, years later, asking my dad if he really believed that there was some sort of scam going on. I told him, “Nobody at admission was telling me a degree in English was a guarantee to make a bunch of money.”