When a Run is more than a Run

One of the philosophies at NIS is that sports transcend games and can be a means to learn about life and uplift people. This belief was apparent to me while running the Chicago Marathon this past October. Even though the turmoil of the economic crisis casts a shadow over the country, almost 40,000 runners showed up and over one million spectators were present. Runners from all over the world race in the Chicago Marathon and every state is represented. Every time I “toe” the starting line I get Goosebumps as there is a shared sense of purpose with those around me, we are all trying to get to the finish line. When the gun goes off you can’t help but get swept up in the adrenaline as 40,000 bodies are all moving in the same direction and the crowd is cheering vigorously. Everyone is running for their own reason. Some people run for charity, others for the personal challenge and some for those who have recently passed. You can see the passion in the eyes of the runners. If just for this one day, nothing else matters but finishing this race and achieving their goal. Even though many are facing economic uncertainty the crowd still cheers and smiles as if nothing else matters but getting every runner to finish line. It is a beautiful sight to see a runner who is almost broken uplifted by the cheers of the crowd or to see another runner encourage a fellow runner to keep going. As I run and take it all in I realize that this event means more than just the sport it encapsulates. This event has the power to move people and bring them together for a shared purpose. This event inspires people to reach higher and strive for things they once thought were impossible. Even in times of trouble sports will always have a place because they bring out the best in people and make us believe in something greater than ourselves.

Even though the below quote is about baseball and not marathon running I feel it highlights how sports transcend games. It is a scene from the 1989 movie Field of Dreams.

“Ray, people will come Ray. They'll come to Iowa for reasons they can't even fathom. They'll turn up your driveway not knowing for sure why they're doing it. They'll arrive at your door as innocent as children, longing for the past. Of course, we won't mind if you look around, you'll say. It's only $20 per person. They'll pass over the money without even thinking about it: for it is money they have and peace they lack. And they'll walk out to the bleachers; sit in shirtsleeves on a perfect afternoon. They'll find they have reserved seats somewhere along one of the baselines, where they sat when they were children and cheered their heroes. And they'll watch the game and it'll be as if they dipped themselves in magic waters. The memories will be so thick they'll have to brush them away from their faces. People will come Ray. The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game: it's a part of our past, Ray. It reminds of us of all that once was good and it could be again. Oh... people will come Ray. People will most definitely come.” (Field of Dreams, 1989)

By Justin Mayer, Executive Director NIS