What Lies Before Us

The third inspiration that James chose to see on his poster boards is:

What lies before us and what lies behind us

are small matters compared to

what lies within us

Emerson

WHAT LIES BEHIND US:

Race prep is going well. At least from my standpoint. From James' standpoint, I'm not really sure if he has managed to get everything he needs quite yet, but he will.

This is the first race where we've had to pack our bags and rent a place to stay. Luckily James reserved a house months ago, so that's one thing off our list.

Movie players for the car ride...check, movies for the players....check. Regina is making the craft bags (crayons, notebooks, etc.).

I spent the weekend working on the shirts. This is the big race. The race he's always wanted to do, short of being the World Championship in Hawaii. Thus, cow bells, poster boards, and iron-on transfer t-shirts were a must. I'm one of those; I tend to over do it a bit when it comes to milestones and celebrations. (We all have something.)

The kids drew pictures for the t-shirts. Here's what the adult and baby shirts will look like, the kids who drew get a shirt with just their own drawing on it:

WHAT LIES BEFORE US:

Though I worked on the T-shirts (that meant printing the iron-ons), I still have to iron-on the transfers for 10 shirts.

Pre-cook the carb-loading meal the night before we leave.

Pack, pack, and pack some more.

For the triathlete, the process is train, train and then train some more. Then come race day, get up early with the masses, get set up in the transition area, and get into a mental zone. Also, a quick check of the water bottle, Goo, Perpetuem, Shot Blocks, race bib, bike go-through, put on the wet suit, etc.

For the fans, which in James' case includes me and the three kids, and my sister, her husband, and their three kids, we prepare a different kind of way. We check our cameras, camcorders, water cooler, snacks (for the kids), sunblock, sunglasses, portable potty (for the kids though wish an adult one would be as easy to pull out of a backpack), kids clothes proper, kids shoes and socks proper, money just in case, and this time, the cow bells, the poster boards (divided up for each leg of the race), and extra sustenance for James.

WHAT LIES WITHIN US:

In my previous experience this is how race day goes

(with some preconceived tweaking for the Ironman):

We take pics with James before the race.

Then we say good luck and goodbye and head out to find a good place for video and pictures. This is no easy task. Jason, my sister's husband, breaks off and takes pictures and some video from his location (It's better for one to stand near the exit to get the shot of the bike transition), while me, Regina and the 6 kids stand at a distance. We will get the water shot and then run (I mean book it with 6 kids ages 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 8) to a distance where we can see James coming on the bike (this event is looped for the spectators so we will get a couple of opportunities to see him).

In the past, once we've seen James on the bike we break up again so one of us can catch James at the transition for the run while the other will set up a cheering section at another point of the run.

This time, since the race will take approximately 15 hours, us fans will have to take a break. We will all go back to the rental after we see James on the bike, to eat lunch, rest and get out of the sun for a bit.

Then, Jason has agreed (thank you Jason) to watch all 6 kids at the rental until near the end of the race while Regina and I head back out to meet James at one of the points on his map.

During this meet up time, James will swap out his water bottles, get some sustenance; maybe more Goo, shot blocks, and Perpetuem (600 calorie beverage). We will also have bandanas with ice, frozen washclothes and other ways to help him lower his body temperature. Although the run is looped, Regina and I will start heading toward a more distant point so we can continue to cheer him on. (perhaps bringing the older kids' scooters will be a good idea).

Hopefully when all is said and done, James will have had the strength to cross the finish line and none of the fans will have heat stroke.

In writing:

What lies behind me is the desire to write a book, the pain of completing the first draft, the bewilderment and inexperience of sending query letters and partials.

What lies before me includes revising my first two books down to one and revising book three into book two. WriteOnCon is still uphead. And I'm days away from hearing back from an agent who has my partial.

What lies within me includes the strength and perseverance to follow my dream by not giving up, and continuing to write, revise, and blog. I hope that should my partial come back a rejection, that I will find the appropriate sustenance to keep me going.

Hopefully, I, too, will make it to my finish line.