As I planned less than two weeks ago, I participated in Jerusalem Marathon in the category 10km. Since this was the first time for me to run 10km at all, I didn't know how fast (or slowly) I would be able to run. Anyway, my goal this time was to finish. Not only could I finish but also could I run a little faster than I had wanted - result: about 56 minutes. Good for me! :-)
I don't remember having such an empowering experience - experiencing the feeling of accomplishment and fulfillment - for quite some time. This is mainly because I imposed upon myself a measurable physical challenge and conquered it though this might be an insignificant challenge for many other people, especially for more experienced runners.
I could understand at a most fundamental level why so many people get addicted to marathons and shorter competitions. One of the main reasons must be the sense of accomplishment and fulfillment after reaching the goal. I'll definitely continue participating in this annual athletic event in Jerusalem.
Though I haven't participated in any similar events in any other city in the world, I can think of what must make this one in Jerusalem quite unique - first of all, a large number of frum runners, and second, the warmth of local residents who come out to the street in large numbers to cheer up us runners. I also enjoyed the special atmosphere of unity I started feeling even before I started running. About 30,000 people from Israel and many other countries in the world gathered together here in Jerusalem for one single goal in the double sense of the word.
This empowering experience has also made me reaffirm the decision I made rather recently - I will definitely never win the first prize in this marathon in any category, nor does this interest me, but I do want to be No. 1 professionally as I remembered reading rather recently that there is a huge difference between being No. 1 and being No. 2 in any area of expertise. To attain this goal one has to find an area where one has the potential to become No. 1 instead of wasting one's time and energy to improve one's mad or mediocre performance and accomplishment.
Fortunately, I found rather recently an area where I might be able to become No. 1 for a very simple reason - it's almost impossible for anyone else to work in that specific area though I wouldn't say that it's a niche. All the things I've learned so far in both academic and non-academic settings as well as from life in general contribute to the professional qualification to probably become the only one who can engage himself in that area. I'll keep running for this life goal by setting shorter measurable subgoals for shorter periods of time.