New York, New York

On December 3rd, 2010 (precisely one month after turning 40), I mustered up the courage to enter my dream event and partially declared it on Project Grace 2010 in a post titled 'It's Official'. The next day, I started my training.

Despite having taken the first step towards my dream goal, I was very reluctant to name the event for three reasons:

1. I was recovering from a rocky relationship of broken promises to myself, so I was very wary of avoiding old patterns and adding insult to injury.
   
   
2. Though I had registered for the event, my participation was determined on whether or not my name was drawn from a lottery.
   
   
3. I was just plain scared. 

Then after five and a half weeks of training six days a week, something magical happened this morning - I crossed over a threshold. I went from shuffling, to barely jogging into what I can honestly call running. Yes, I ran. By the end of my session, I had run the furthest distance in my set timeframe whilst remaining within my optimum aerobic heart rate zone. A huge milestone.

When I returned home I knew that no matter what, I had to run my dream event.

No. Matter. What.

Not only that, I had to tell the world - for how else would the cosmos conspire to align all the planets for me? So here is my public declaration, made on this day 11/01/11...

I am running the New York Marathon on 6th November 2011 (3 days after my 41st birthday).

Above is the inspirational poster I made over a month ago. I have placed it all around my house, and even have a landscape version my desktop. It's time to share it with the world.

Until tomorrow, be brave and declare your goals and dreams - even if you don't quite know how it'll all happen.

Grace xx