When my feet hit the track, I immediately felt positive energy charging through my body and knew I was on the right “track” to turning my life around as well.
My focus turned inward. I felt myself grow physically, intellectually, mentally, and spiritually with each step and mile bringing me closer to knowing my true self and purpose as I tapped into the power from within that led me to my authentic truth. It’s never too late to learn and sometimes it requires a life challenge that shakes you to your core and gives you a hurdle you must overcome to catapult yourself in a whole new direction. But it requires you to dig deep from within in discomfort and fear and darkness before seeing the light and finding your balance and getting into your healthy rhythm and routine. “Run for life” became my mantra, and what I realized is that I needed to honor and love myself with consistency and nurture my soul day in and day out. I had to just keep going. During the pandemic, I turned to self-care with my exercise, establishing a consistent routine to take steps forward each day. That led me closer to finding my purpose and calling along with my love for running. I realized I was running for life, clarity, and joy from within. I wanted to feel the life force, strength, vitality, and energy come alive from within after going through a very challenging time in my life as I faced a parent’s death and a difficult divorce. It took the COVID pandemic for me to unleash my athletic superpowers as an All-American sprinter (achieving an All-American time in just the third race I ever competed in as an athlete) as well as my return to being a student and going to law school. It turned out to be the perfect time to invest in myself. I returned from a monthlong trip after losing a parent with words that haunted me until I figured out what they meant. They were the last words my stepfather said to me: “Will you move on with your life already?”
photo by Jordan Andrade

photo by Jordan Andrade

photo by Jordan Andrade