On Saturday evening, my mom and her husband Kurt participated in their first ever 5k. They've been working up to this distance for the past 6 months or more, doing a combination of walking and jogging. So when the gun went off at the start of the race in Brevard on Saturday evening, they followed their plan-- walked slowly to start, then began picking up the pace little by little until they were nice and warmed up, and then did intervals of walking quickly, then running a bit, then walking quickly, then running... all the way to the finish line. On the last hill Mom's lower back was aching and she wanted to walk, but when she looked over her shoulder and saw another couple closing in on them, she took a deep breath, found some race-induced adrenaline, and pushed on to the top of the hill and across the finish line... ahead of the competition. Go Mom! Go Kurt!
I'm so proud of them for doing this race, but more so for the work they've put into getting into shape. Mom turns 60 this week-- how many 60-year-olds can cover 3.1 miles in 49 minutes?
Instead of kicking backing and relaxing in their retirement, these two whipper-snappers are actually more active now than they ever have been. With increasing health issues arising in the past few years, they've realized the importance of getting good exercise. So now, unlike ever before, they work out daily, going for walks or hikes or jogs around the mountain they live on, or doing a kickboxing video and ab work. Service is extremely important to them, and keeps them on their toes. In the last few months they've helped a disabled friend move into her own home, have escorted a group of folks who are blind on a fishing trip to the Outer Banks, and have worked with middle and high school-aged boys at a residential school. That's in addition to working closely with the church youth group, and lots of other activities.
It's great to see these two making and living the mind-body-spirit connection. They set a great example, and I've enjoyed watching them act on the realization that God gave us these bodies to house our spirits while here on earth. If we want to do good things in His honor, we have to take care of our physical selves as much as our spiritual selves.
So a big congrats goes out to Kay & Kurt for their race on Saturday and their young-at-heart spirit!
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Way to go Kay and Kurt!
I wish my parents would make exercise a priority as you have...it is obvious that Carly is proud.
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