Celebrating Completion

On Saturday, I completed the Country Music Half Marathon. I wish I could say, “On Saturday, I ran the Country Music Half Marathon,” but really there was no running. There was some walking, some trotting, but mostly walking. With about a 10-minute bathroom break, my “chip” time was 3:22.

I ran (for lack of a better verb) with the Powered by Hope Team to raise scholarship money for kids to attend New Hope Academy. I can personally attest that this is a great cause. New Hope Academy is an incredible school with an audacious vision, to transform culture by creating a new generation of Christ-like leaders. I raised $670 dollars, of my $1,000 goal, and money is still trickling in. (You can donate here, by the way.)

Although I would have liked to have run faster and raised more, finishing 13.1 miles in the 75+ degree heat with the Nashville sun beating down on you and collecting over $500 is an accomplishment any way you slice it. But for some reason, I did not properly celebrate.

From the moment I crossed the finish line, even as I was running the race, I was thinking about how I was going to do it better next time. I was strategizing about my training. I was scheming about my fund raising. Last night, I realized that I truly never celebrated my completion. So today, I am taking a moment, to say “Yay Lindsey, you finished the race, a job well done.”

So tell me…how about you, do you take time to celebrate your achievements? Or do you find yourself always moving straight ahead to what is next?