Don't Look Back

"Don't Look Back!" I recall as I advance forward. I feel the wind in front of me as I constantly break the wall. I feel the ache in my legs and the sun beating down on me. I hear the faint voices surrounding me. I taste the thick metallic liquid in my throat. My body wants to give in and stop, while I keep repeating, "Give me the strength to keep going." 

I remember these keywords since the beginning, "Don't Look Back." They were told by my cross country and track coach, Mr Riggs. They became engraved in my brain. He claimed that every second I looked back it was time wasted I could've advanced forward. 

I started running my eight grade year with cross country. I wasn't much good, but I loved it all. I loved running in desert-like conditions as well as humid or freezing. I loved the sound of my shoes hitting against the ground. I loved the relief after crossing the finish line and the exhaustion that came with it. 

Fast forward to track season, it's the first race. I remember being so nervous and scared to the point where tears were rolling down my cheeks. I remember ten minutes before the two mile race began I was listening to music through my earbuds trying to "get into the zone." It was seconds before the race started. The girls were running alongside the boys. I had said my prayers and it was time for the race in Garden City to begin.

I advance and my physical body felt like giving up, but my mentality was of perseverance. Laps pass until it is the final lap. People had passed me as well as I had passed people. I have 200 meters left and my coach tells me again to not look back and I run like I've never ran before. Tears rolling down my face, I cross the finish line. I walk towards my team and They receive me with water and congratulate me while I get ready for my next events. The next events of the day pass by.

On our way home, on the bus, our coach passes out medals. He names off a couple of boys and takes a pause and hands me a medal and congratulates me on obtaining third place in the 3200 meter run. More tears roll down my face due to the fact that it was my first-ever medal for running.