Chapter 7 is in the queue. Also, as promised, updates have finally been posted for Chapters 1 and 2 to match the tense of the rest of the story.
Chapter 7 is the story of Lisa's first 5K and is, in some respects, the story of my own first 5K, complete with my eyeballs starting to sweat severely as the finisher medal was draped around my neck.
It is, in a way, my hope that this story will demystify running a bit. You don't have to be a size 3 with legs the size of a tree trunk. You don't have to be able to run a seven-minute mile. You just have to be willing to get out and put one foot in front of the other, be willing to train regularly and properly, be willing to challenge yourself, and be willing to commit to finding your best performance - whatever it is - and bringing it to the start line.
The discussion about the music playing before and during the race is completely real-life. In fact, if you're curious, here are my playlists for the 5K I am doing tomorrow morning:
Warmup:
"Come Worship the Lord" - John Michael Talbot
"I Am the Bread of Life" - Collin Raye
"Homeland" - Kenny Rogers
"This Is Me" - Keala Settle
"Home" - Philip Phillips.
Main race:
"Come Early Morning" - Don Williams
"I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" - The Proclaimers
"Ride Like the Wind" - Christopher Cross
"Walk of Life" - Dire Straits
"Fame" - Irene Cara
"Born To Run" - Bruce Springsteen
"Camouflage" - Brad Paisley
"Pass My Hat" - Chris LeDoux (yes, this part of Ch. 7 is real)
"Invincible" - Pat Benatar
"The Climb" - Miley Cyrus
"Don't Stop Believing" - Journey
"Are You Gonna Go My Way" - Lenny Kravitz
"If You're Going Through Hell" - Rodney Atkins
"Roar" - Katy Perry
Enjoy, and I will see you all next week as we journey to the land where flight attendants lie to you on arrival.