Once
outside, I was confronted with a whole new sea of challenges that included
uneven ground, train tracks in the middle of the downtown streets, curbs, car traffic, people walking towards us while distracted on their cell phones and an
increased level of panic took ahold of me. Within minutes, I realized I had
gotten us lost on our short half-mile walk to the track and had to stop at a corner
while I consulted my phone.
What had I
gotten myself into?
*******************************
It all
started 16 months ago when my brother and sister-in-law welcomed a beautiful
baby girl into their lives. Ten fingers, ten toes, chubby little cheeks,
peaches-and-cream complexion, rosy red lips and the most beautiful blue eyes
you could ever imagine. She was perfect in every way. Except one.
 |
| could she be any cuter?! |
Doctors had
noticed something unusual on an early ultrasound and a few months after her
birth, an MRI confirmed that something was wrong with her optic nerves. Almost
a year ago exactly, they delivered the news that sweet baby K was blind.
Although I wasn't surprised, hearing it was still devastating and I
mourned for all that she would never get to do or experience.
Despite the
fact that I have never been friends with, worked with or otherwise interacted
with someone who was visually impaired (VI), I certainly had a lot of
assumptions about the life they would lead.
*******************************
Fast forward to this past November. I was sitting at my desk one morning
reading a story about a woman who served as a guide runner during the NYC
marathon for a visually impaired woman. The guide talked about how it was the
most incredible and rewarding experience and she couldn't wait to do it again one day.
After reading this story, I immediately knew it was something I wanted to do.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any organizations in Portland that
matched up VI runners with guides for races or even just training runs. I
posted questions on all forms of social media, contacted national organizations
to inquire about local chapters and reached out to everyone I could think of in
order to get started.
Eventually, I found someone who was part of a Facebook group dedicated to VI
runners and their guides who was more than willing to assist me. Through him, I
was put in contact with a woman in Portland, Jen, who is completely blind. She
and I began emailing back and forth and, ultimately, she agreed to be my guinea
pig and teach me how to be a running guide.
That explains how I found myself last week, lost on a street corner in
downtown Portland, trying to find my way to a nearby track.
Last week, I ran 47 miles. Some were hard, some were easy, some were on
a treadmill and some were on a trail. As every runner knows, all miles are not
created equal. And of the 47 miles I ran last week, one of them stood out far
and above the rest as one of my
favorite
miles
ever.
favorite
miles
ever.
It was the one easy mile that Jen and I ran together on the track.
This woman is truly unbelievable. The day before we ran together, I
emailed her to confirm we were still on for our run. She responded that despite
a possible concussion she endured while competing in a goalball tournament in
Finland from the previous week as well as some leftover soreness from a skiing
accident she suffered a few days earlier, she still wanted to run. [Jen is on
the US National Goalball team that competes in the Paralympic Games.]
When we were walking towards the track, she mentioned she hasn’t been
running much since finishing Hood to Coast, mainly because in the winter she
focuses on biathlons. You know, biathlons, where people ski and then shoot
rifles?! Yeah, she does that, too. And if that all weren’t enough, she and her
legally blind partner have a 2 year-old son.
Clearly, there isn't anything she can’t do.
Jen and I are planning to run again next week and I hope to find other
VI runners who are looking for training partners as well. Eventually, I’d like to talk someone into
running a 5k or 10k race with me as their guide. And if all goes well, I would
love to start a network of local VI runners and sighted runners who are willing
to be their guides for occasional training runs and/or races.
But first, I have to overcome my fear of running with Jen on sidewalks,
city streets and through the everyday obstacles that most of us don’t even
notice. Last week, I was only comfortable with running on the track. This week,
we’re going to try a path along the downtown waterfront. I can tell you one
thing for sure – Jen won’t be the nervous one.
*******************************
Meanwhile, my little niece is continuing to defy all the doctors’ dire
predictions and is progressing just like any other toddler. She has shocked
everyone (except her parents, who knew all along that she had vision) and
proven that she isn’t blind. We won’t know the extent of her vision impairment
until she is older but I now know, regardless of her diagnosis, there isn't anything she can’t do, either.
*******************************
Lastly, all this talk about someone as courageous as Jen reminds me of another Jen who lived her life without fear. This month, in a few select cities throughout the country, Cycle for Survival is taking place. I can guarantee it is the most fun you will ever have at a fundraiser and I encourage you to see if there is one taking place at a city near you. I talked about Jen in a post last year and her belief that anything is possible if you live a life without fear.
Have you ever been a running guide to a VI runner? Do you think you would be interested in doing it one day?
- Kristen
