Every Single Step, Every Single Mile

     Well, here we are.  2019 has started and we are already in the month of February.  Does time fly by that fast the older we get, or does it only seem that way?  I turned 46 years old a couple days ago.  How in the world am I already 46?  I know most will say that I'm not really old, and if I'm honest I never really feel my age anyway.  When I say most days I still feel like a kid, I really do.  Heck, when Edyta was prepping dinner that day, I was sitting at the table putting together Star Wars Legos.  Legos that I bought for myself.  On Friday.  For my Birthday.  I'd be lying if I said that wasn't fun.

     To say the past six months have been great for everyone would be completely false.  There have been some really good times, such as my engagement, but there have also been some bad times.  It's these times that have plagued my thoughts lately while I run.  All of us live each day in stride.  We get up, shower, and go to work.  When we get home, we may run, eat dinner, and spend time with our families.  We worked hard, so we get to do the things that we enjoy the most.  But for some, that can no longer happen.  Sadly, it was not by choice.

     We all know what happened this past October at the Tree Of Life Synagogue.  11 people had their lives tragically taken from them.  They didn't ask for that to happen.  No one did.  Yet, even in a world where we have supposedly evolved into something better, there are still those that feel the way they do, and commit a crime so heinous that all we do is ask why or how could this happen?  These are questions that none of us are able to answer, and perhaps never will.  We hear about these horrible situations almost daily, to which I wonder if it's always been this way.  We live in a world of 24 hour news, and social media.  Growing up, we had some 24 hour news, but that was about it.  Maybe I didn't pay too much attention as a kid. I don't know.  All I do know is that when this happened, it hurt all of us very deeply.  It hit...home.  It fills our hearts with unbearable pain.  We feel sadness for those affected, and we cry beside them.  It doesn't matter if we knew these folks or not.  What we do know is that these 11 victims were someone's friends, and someone's family.  They were from Pittsburgh so that also made them our family.  We've heard countless stories of  all these truly inspiring and wonderful people.  To have them taken from us is just simply unfair.

RIP Rich "Dobe" Holst

     Roll around to the holiday season, and a friend of mine, Mark "Q" Holst, had lost his older brother and best friend, Rich (a.k.a Dobe.)  I didn't know Rich as well as most people, but again I knew of him, and I had the pleasure of being able to hang out with him from time to time at the local pubs years ago when we were all hitting up Moon Township having a good time.  Even in the later years of our lives, he was still doing what he did best and that was making people laugh and smile.  Everyone will be able to continue to do that, but they will do it without him.  However, because Rich was the guy he was, they'll be able to laugh and smile at all the memories they have of him.

     The day after Rich's memorial service, my friend Erica had lost her brother Chris.  Chris has passed away due to injuries suffered from a car accident on his way home from work.  Erica and I never hung out while in high school, but we became friends after I returned home from the Navy.  I hadn't seen her in quite some time, so when I heard about what happened, my heart ached for her.  I also felt ashamed because I did not realize she had a brother.  Maybe perhaps because he was so many years older than us, that at the time we were always hanging out, it was not something that we really talked about.  I don't really know.  But, what I do know is she lost her brother, someone who helped her growing up, protected her, and help guide her in becoming the woman she is today.  Again, it's not fair to have someone so young taken from his family so soon.  He was adored by many; he was loved by his wife.  He was his daughter's best friend.  Just...unfair.

     I rewind to even before October, a month earlier in fact, and a friend of ours had gone missing.  He was found a few days later, and we learned that he had passed away in his sleep after suffering a heart attack.  This was a gentleman whom I worked with down at the Boardwalk and The Matrix while I was a DJ.  He was a hell of a bartender, and a downright cool dude.  Phil Tallentire was one of my best friends' best friend.  He and Bonnie had known each other since she was about 19, slinging drinks at Donzies.  He lived a quit life, and again, would always bring a smile to everyone's face.  43 was simply too young to pass.  He wasn't ready to go, and yet...he's gone.  But, he's not gone from our memories, and that surely counts for something.

Phil Tallentire and I, back in 2010.

     I'm not trying to bring anyone down with this blog post, just so everyone is aware.  It's just that on my weekly runs, when I'm flying solo throughout Crafton my mind wanders at lot.  But with everything that has seemed to happen around us the past six months, it seems my mind has wandered to sadness, and that's OK.  After a few moments, my mind will then begin wander to happiness as I think about the good times, and the good memories that I have, that everyone has.  This is what keeps me going.

     I made it to my 46th birthday.  I don't know how, but I'm thankful.  Unfortunately, all of those above won't get to see their next birthday, but that doesn't mean that we can't honor them when theirs comes around.  We can, and we should.  We should celebrate them and what they meant to us because what is life but a celebration?  Sure it may have moments that get us down, but the moments that bring us up far outweigh anything else.  I truly believe that.

Ready to rock at Motley Crue!

     I enjoy running.  I really do.  It's not a chore for me at all.  It's not just a habit that I have, nor a routine.  It's something I simply love to do (just as much as playing with Star Wars Legos.)  But it means so much more to me, and I love it even more when I can pay tribute to those that are no longer with us.  If we get lost along the way, they'll still be there in our hearts, and without a doubt they'll help put us back on the right path to the finish.  When I decided to run my first marathon, coming up with the hashtag "26 miles, 26 dedications" is something that I thought maybe would take on a life of it's own.  Maybe someone reading my blogs would do the same thing.  After all, doesn't our run mean more when we and pay tribute to someone, even if they are a stranger to us?  They may be a stranger to us, but they were so much more to someone else.

     So I say to Phil, to Dobe and Chris, and to the 11 strangers taken from us at the Tree Of Life Synagogue: if you're all up there looking down on us from the heavens, if you're all listening to us, please do us a favor.  Please watch over us and guides us through this city, the greatest city on the planet.  Pittsburgh - The City Of Champions.  We've all made it through January, and February is just getting started.  If one of us stumbles, will you be the angel that doesn't let us fall?  If  you will we promise you that we will honor you all, all the way to the finish.  Every single step.  Every single mile.  Thank you, and god bless you.  SheElohim yevarach otcha/otach.

Sinceriously,

Chuck Hull, The Running Jedi


PS:  If you'd like to donate to the Mario Lemieux Foundation, you can do so by clicking the link here:

https://www.crowdrise.com/o/en/campaign/mario-lemieux-foundation-pittsburgh-marathon-2019/chuckhull

Remember: if we hit $2500 raised (the goal) not only will one of you win a signed Pens Jersey from me, but I will also run the marathon in a dress.  Yup, you read that correctly.

Also: NEW RAFFLE PRIZE!!! A Garmin Forerunner 35!  One lucky person will win a Garmin Forerunner 35 from me!

Thank you folks!