And the Winner Is...

ALMOST Jacob!! For the past three years, we have participated in a "Spooktakular" Kids K race the week before Halloween. The boys are always there to cheer me on at my races and I LOVE the thought of being able to cheer them on in something I love.

Well, this year Jacob had a goal to be in the top 10 finishers. It seemed like an obtainable goal, so we talked it up on the way to the race. When they lined up at the starting line, the coordinator explained the race course. It was a bit confusing, and Jacob informed him he didn't know where he was going. "Don't worry, they'll be plenty of kids to follow." As the kids started running, Jacob broke out in a full on sprint. Oh no! I hadn't prepared him. We didn't talk about pacing himself and I thought for sure he would lose it quickly and slow down. But as the kids turned the corner and started running back towards us, Jacob was still running strong and in third place. I was so proud of him!!

(love this picture!)

And then, as he passed me watching in wide-eyed wonder, the girls ahead of him slowed down and Jacob kept going. He had just taken first place. I was exstatic!! My son was in FIRST PLACE!!! I had never had that feeling that Jacob must have felt at that moment: Leader of the pack. What a feeling!! My son!! Yeah, yeah...Oh no, why is he turning?? Suddenly there were no kids to follow, and instead of going straight, Jacob had turned at the cone and was heading back towards us, while the other kids continued on the path. My heart sunk! By the time I got over to him, he had figured it out and took off back with all the other kids. He fininshed the course, passed many of the runners back up and ended up coming in fourth place!! Which is fabulous, but left us all wondering "what if he hadn't turned?" The race coordinator felt so bad about the situation and gave Jacob a medal. In our book, he was the winner.
One of the reasons I love races so much is because of the little life lessons that can always be learned. Phil and I talked about how proud of Jacob we were. When he found out he had taken the wrong path, he could have given up and stopped running, but he didn't stop to pout. He quickly turned around and finished good and strong. If Jacob can quickly and eagerly get back on the straight and narrow path when he takes a wrong turn in life, he will sail on to the finish line as he did yesterday. Great job Jake. You're my hero!