Taper and a funeral

Marathon taper is going well.

I rested yesterday but not on purpose. I went to work an hour early so I would have time to go a funeral for the pastor of the church I went to from childhood to my teenaged years. His name was Cecil Uzzel and I knew him in typical Baptist fashion as Brother Uzzel. Brother Uzzel as they said at the funeral was a man who loved people. Much of what I know about the Bible began as I listen to him preach for all of the years I was at Emmanuel Baptist Church. He survived his own marathon as he was a prisoner of war for 41 months in Japan and survived the Bataan Death March. He was a great story-teller and the time he spent as a prisoner of war colored some of his messages and captured my imagination. He was a good man.

The day off was apparently good for me. This morning I ran 3 miles with Jakeb and then topped it off with one more alone. I felt great and could have run much further.

For inspiration this week I have been reading the race reports of runners who set some goals for themselves and achieved them in the marathon and beyond. In almost every case their mind had to be discipline to run on as their body told them it was time to stop.

I am stir-crazy as normal and I’m ready to run this race.