Since there are so few practicing Catholics in my generation, my own mother did double duty at my daughter’s baptismal ceremony as grandmother and godmother.  I found the perfect gift for her, a pair of gold studded, cranberry colored Ugg sandals complete with the signature tuft of Australian wool in the foot-bed. I hope that my daughter will be a Christian and follow in her grammy’s footsteps by being a kind and considerate person who thinks of others before herself. My mother would never purchase expensive sandals for herself, but I was happy that she accepted them and said that she would wear them on her trip to Northern Europe this summer. Grammy Judi of course inspired me not to be satisfied with walking in her footsteps, but to chase them down at top speed.  I have yet to exceed my mother’s time in the marathon distance, but I am working on that for this year. I wouldn’t have bothered to register for a marathon this year if I didn’t think that I could beat my mom’s time of eight minute per mile, which she ran at age 50. 

My mom and I have both been competitive runners for the past twenty-six years, and she began running in the mid 1970’s about the time when I was born. There is something different about having a mom who just exercises to stay in shape as opposed to having one who wants to win. You learn that women are supposed to be brave and strong and unafraid of a reasonable amount of physical pain. My own daughter is saddled with such a mother, and it sometimes bothers my husband that I’m not satisfied with exercising to stay in shape, but I have the drive to be competitive, a drive that sometimes keeps me apart from my daughter for hours each day. Growing up, our home’s closets and foyer overflowed with running shoes of different weights, sizes and colors. Many of these shoes had been prizes in races that my mom and I placed in around New England. I think that I even won a pair of light up running shoes from one race. Recently, I purchased a pair of lace-less, quick-transition racing shoes to use for multi sport events. I am hoping to cut down on my transition time between the biking and running sections of my town’s duathlon this year. Having been raised with a great competitive spirit, I vowed to out-pace my daughter’s 46 year old pediatrician this year who nudged me out by two minutes in this race last May. The doctor says that he hopes that we both do a much faster time, and like a gentleman also admits that he doesn’t mind if I beat him. I hope that I can always run in my mother’s shoes and I cannot wait for my own daughter to join me someday.