The One with the Mysterious Package

I get by with a little help from my friends

(The Beatles)

Arriving home from a weary day; the food shopping straining on my shattered arms, my shoulders slumped and subsiding, my fatigued feet scuffing the floor, I thought to myself: 'I don't want to go for a run'.

Day 25: Weary. Tired. Exhausted.

I dumped my shopping in the kitchen, attended to my dog (who was by this point almost eating herself with excitement at my return) and trudged back through the house to hang my coat up. This is when I noticed a package... for me.

'That package is addressed to me' I thought; 'This is strange, who would be sending me a package? Christmas has gone, I haven't ordered anything off the internet, and my birthday isn't for another 7 months...' Confused, I stepped closer towards the package. Tentatively I read and re-read the name... 'yep, my name'. I reached my hand out. Slowly, carefully, smoothly, I lengthened my reach towards it until... it was in my hand. I was holding the mysterious package.

A little shudder of excitement went through me; this was a completely mysterious package... inside could be anything. I scrutinised the handwriting... there was something familiar about it, although I couldn't quite place it, but now I didn't need to... I had deduced that this was a package from a friend.  A friend of mine had sent me a package! Wow!  A package... for me... at no particular time of year, for no particular reason!

Sending caution packing, I ripped into the beautifully wrapped package, eager to see which friend had been so kind as to think of me and what mysterious contents the package contained... my desire to know bursting from me as my fingers went to work on the wrapping.

As the crisp, white paper fell to the floor, I realised that in my hands were two books.

Two books which made me smile so much. Two books from someone who knows me so well. Two books that said 'Thinking of you, friend'.

Cupcakes from the Primrose Bakery, and Marathon Manual by Cathy Shipton and Liz McColgan

It was my friend Diane who had been thinking of me, and in doing so, she had wrapped up these two books with the following message: 'Just thought I would post these to you to help you with your running.'

The cupcake book I had lent her a short while ago as it makes THE BEST chocolate cupcakes EVER! Seriously! She noted that she had returned this to me so I could deservedly replace some of the calories I'd burnt on my journeys! The Marathon Manual she's lent to me as something that had helped her and her husband when they were training for their marathon; Diane thought it might contain some tips to help me. Might?... Definitely!  It was however, her final words which made me smile the most: 'You are doing fantastic, keep it up'. Little had she know when she'd written those words, that I would be unwrapping her mysterious package at the very moment of needing a much needed boost... and there it was, in a neat little package.

On a day where, for one of the first times in the whole of January, I had returned home feeling like I didn't want to run, this one, small, but thoughtful offering from a friend motivated me to get me out the door. I flung a lead around the small, fluffy fool (still) jumping at my legs and headed off my mile run. And do you know what? I ran that mile faster than any of my mile 'recovery' runs over the whole of the Janathon period. In fact, I'm writing this feeling great!

Day 25: Energised. Enthusiasic. Extremely positive.

The Beatles were right. As it's not just Diane who's made me feel this way recently, It's all my friends whether they're in Manchester, Letchworth or Leeds; home, work or running club; in person, on the phone or on the internet. At some point your kind words have helped me smile, stay positive and get out there... Thank you.



(ANAIS NIN, diary entry, March 1937)



Distance: 1.3 miles

Weather: cloudy and a little damp in the air

Feeling: bloody brilliant!

See my run here.