What a busy spring this has been! With all the nasty weather, I have spent a lot of time working in my yard — picking up limbs and branches, raking up leaves and pine needles — and finding time to plant a few perennials. Unfortunately, all this yard maintenance has cut into my workout time.

While there is merit in doing physical work, the type of work I have been doing hasn’t been preparing me for the Peachtree Road Race on July 4. There have been a few other setbacks that I’ve allowed to derail me, such as a pretty serious shoulder injury, and now the deadline is approaching and I have considered throwing in the towel.

Thank goodness for friends! My friend, Connie, told me that she hasn’t been quite as diligent in training as she had intended, either, but made me realize that we do not have the option to quit at this point.

We trained together for the Berry races and have faced the challenges and joys of raising our daughters together. Reflecting back on the past few years, it seems that even when challenges have seemed overwhelming, it is the right frame of mind that helps us to break the task into manageable pieces, resulting ultimately, in completing the task.

This works in all aspects of life, from parenting, dieting, physical training, to our work lives. Connie reminded me that many people walk the entire 10K Peachtree Road Race, so regardless of how much or how little we run, we’ll be in good company. The main point to remember is that we will get out and do our best, whatever it is that day, and we will celebrate crossing the finish line.

I was saddened to hear recently about an Oklahoma Sooners football player who died unexpectedly, and I watched as one of his coaches talked about his personal qualities. The coach remarked that the player overcame significant adversity to become a starter for their team.

These remarks really stuck with me, because I realized that the adversity the coach spoke of is probably what drove the player to become such a great athlete. The presence of adversity tends to cause humans to develop skills they may have been unaware of.

Tenacity, perseverance and being focused are all traits that come when faced with obstacles that seem greater than we are. The only options are to quit or to take on the challenge one step at a time.

So I pledge to get back on track with the walking and running, if possible. If the running is not possible, I choose not to quit.